Friday, August 15, 2008

Louisiana, Mexico, and Trade

I couldn't help but notice this little nugget of information in a Times-Picayune article this morning:

Trade with all of the state's top 10 export countries climbed in the first half of the year. There was three-digit percentage growth to three countries: Colombia, Germany and Venezuela. Mexico replaced Japan, which slipped to second, in the period as the state's top trading partner.
The emphasis in the above citation is mine. Another reason to support the existence of a Mexican consulate in New Orleans. And another reason for Louisianians to read my book: Mexico: A Global Studies Handbook.

**Cross-posted at Cuaderno Latinoamericano

UPDATE: Friday, August 15, 2008, 10:31AM: Please note that a Mexican consulate does exist in New Orleans at this time. The consulate was closed for a while, but reopened this past April. I was just expressing general support for having the consulate here. I wasn't trying to suggest that we didn't have one, and therefore needed one. Sorry for the confusion.

3 comments:

Leigh C. said...

Damn! Where should we stick the consulate in the city?

Huck said...

Oops! I should have been clearer, Leigh. We do have a Mexican consulate in the city now. They reopened it last April. Here's a story on the reopening: http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/04/mexican_consulate_opens_monday.html. I was just posing a reason to support its being here, not suggesting that we lacked one. But I can see how my language could have been confusing on this point. I'm going to add something to the text to clarify this point.

Leigh C. said...

Sorry about MY assumption that there isn't one here. This IS a port city accepting international goods through its riverfront - and it is only right to highlight and underscore the role that these consulates have here. It is another reason why New Orleans should not be left to die slowly.