Logistic Barriers to U.S.–Mexico Grain and Soybean Trade

Abstract

Fourteen years after the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), border-crossing restrictions still remain with Mexico. Although studies have analyzed the impact of NAFTA trade liberalization, there has only been limited research on effects of informal trade barriers on U.S.–Mexico grain and soybean flows. This paper quantitatively measures the impact of logistic barriers impeding U.S.–Mexico grain and soybean trade. A conditional model testing for the presence of asymmetries in grain trade suggests that logistic barriers and transshipments are correlated. Econometric analysis rejects the null hypoInternational Relations/Trade,