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Mexico's Development Experience, 1950-85: Lessons and Future Prospects

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Miguel D. Ramírez
Miguel D. Ramírez*
Affiliation:
Trinity College (Hartford, CT)
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Extract

In the late seventies and early eighties the Mexican economy was in a crisis situation. This crisis, however, did not manifest itself until August 1982 when the Mexican government sent shock waves through the international financial community by declaring a temporary moratorium on external debt payments. Six years earlier, during the waning months of the Echeverría administration, a similar financial and economic crisis had taken place amid rumors of an impending military coup. These adverse economic developments - and their challenge to the country's long-term political and social stability - stand in stark contrast to the so-called “miracle years” of the late fifties and sixties. During these years M éxico enjoyed high rates of economic growth coupled with annual rates of inflation (below 5%) which were the envy of the developing world.

This paper will argue that, on closer examination, the rapid economic growth of this period was achieved as a result of economic and financial policies which, by exacerbating existing structural weaknesses endemic to the Mexican economy, paved the way for the crises of 1976 and 1982.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , Summer 1986 , pp. 39 - 66
Copyright
Copyright © University of Miami 1986

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