periodic note on integration and trade in the americas
	This document is to inform Bank staff and other interested parties about recent developments in integration and trade among Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries and between these and other countries and world regions. Published approximately twice a year, the Periodic Note reviews the most important trends in intra-regional trade flows, LAC trade with extra-regional partners and current integration initiatives in the Andean Community, CACM, Caricom, Mercosur, NAFTA and the hemisphere. Issues are available in this home page in PDF format. Return to top
joint intal-itd-sta papers
	A new series of studies covering issues related to trade and integration, and regional cooperation. The joint INTAL-ITD-STA publications are: Working Papers, refereed articles offering a significant contribution to existing policy research in the area of trade and integration; Working Papers financed by the Special Initiative on Trade and Integration(SITI); and Occasional Papers, articles of interest to the current debate on these issues. Return to top
ftaa documents and databases
	As part of the IDB-OAS-ECLAC Tripartite Committee, the Bank has provided technical support to the FTAA process since its inception in 1994. Day-to-day responsibility for coordinating the Bank's role within the Tripartite Committee ­ and in the FTAA process more generally ­ is centered in INT/ITD, with strong collaboration from the Bank's Statistics and Quantitative Analysis Unit (INT/STA). Public distribution of FTAA documents, including those prepared by the Bank at the request of FTAA entities, is subject to approval by the respective entity and the FTAA Vice-Ministers. This site contains some of the official documents that the Bank has prepared and a link to the official FTAA site , which contains all official documents of the process.   Return to top
tax and integration
	One surefire way to increase the competitiveness of a country's exports in global markets is to make its tax system amenable to businesses-and especially to manufacturers of products and providers of services in which the country has a competitive advantage. Unfortunately, designing the 'perfect' tax structure isn't easy, even on the national level. Policymakers must devise a system that raises enough tax revenues to finance public expenditures without sacrificing the nation's competitiveness. The difficulties are compounded when the nation is a member of a regional trade block, since then policymakers are faced with the need to harmonize their tax systems with those of the other nations. Not surprisingly, conflicts of interest often materialize between national constituents and members of the regional trade block. Return to top
economic and social progress in latin america
	The IDB's Economic and Social Progress Report for 2002, entitled Beyond Borders, The New Regionalism in Latin America, was the result of a joint effort by the IDB's Research Department and Integration and Regional Programs Department. It is a comprehensive view of regional integration, one of the four central pillars of the Bank's institutional strategy, along with competitiveness, modernization of the state, and social development, under the over-arching goals of economic growth and reducing poverty. Return to top
conference and seminars papers
	The IDB frequently organizes and/or participates in conferences, seminars and workshops on topics related to trade and integration. This section contains papers presented at some of these events. These papers are not official Bank documents and should not be cited as such.   Return to top
other documents
	This category includes a range of studies on trade and integration-related issues, as well as presentation and speeches given by Bank Senior Management on relevant topics in this area. Some of these studies pre date the launching of the joint INTAL-ITD-STA Working and Occasional Papers Series.   Return to top
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