Negotiations toward a North American free trade area (FTA) started in early 1991. This study assesses the impact such negotiations would have on the US and Mexican economies, the goals of a North American ETA, and the implications for world trade relations. Three main topics are examined: the goals of the United States, Mexico, and Canada in pursuing closer trade ties, and the appropriate modalities and timetable for achieving those objectives; the implications of prospective negotiations: what should and should not be on the table, how the US-Canada model could be applied, and/or how that model would need to be modified; and the implications for the world trading system in light of the results of the Uruguay Round of multilateral trade negotiations in the GATT.