John Horn: NAFTA withdrawal could harm Missouri exports

Olin professor John Horn says Missouri exports to Mexico and Canada, its chief international trading partners, could be put at risk if the Trump Administration moves forward with plans to withdraw from NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement.

“This is where Missouri exports. And this is where St. Louis exports,” said Horn, senior lecturer in economics, during an interview this week with St. Louis Public Radio. “So the state will have to replace those exports somewhere.”

In a nearly five-minute segment aired during Morning Edition, Horn addressed the consequences of talks this week in Montreal, where negotiators are gathered to discuss reworking the pact, or the possibility of the United States withdrawing. According to the public radio piece, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates a loss of 250,000 jobs in Missouri if the Trump administration exits the agreement.

Horn addressed the benefits or demerits of NAFTA, whether it has cost jobs in the United States, and the potential benefits of renegotiating the agreement.

The current round of negotiations, Horn said, introduces uncertainty in the business community, which can be unhealthy.

“If businesses don’t know where they should be investing, or how they should be investing, they tend to hold back on investments and that is going to slow growth down,” he said.

Read more about Horn’s interview or listen to the complete piece on St. Louis Public Radio’s website.