BIRCH, Mellissa H <br/><br/>
Mercosur :  the road to economic integration in the southern cone 

 - New York :  Marcel Dekker,  2000 
<br/><br/> This review of the historical record of economic integration in southern South American demonstrates that while MERCOSUL is very much an outgrowth of historical attempts at Latin American political and economic integration, and closely follows on the bilateral Argentina-Brazil accords of the mid - 1980s it, also represents an adaptation to the contemporary political climate. The political process through wich MERCOSUR was pursued and the emphasis on regional cooperation is reminiscent of the traditional rhetoric and strategy associated with Latin American integration attempts. Yet, the form and timing of its groth has clearly been influenced by international events and  conditioned by current trends toward free markets and neo-liberal economic policies. As such, MERCOSUR represents the current set of public policies which define the new competitive environment for business in the Southern Cone