Freer trade: A way to sustainable recovery?

Programs of economic liberalization have many common features all over the world, but they do not necessarily have the same consequences. Differences in their effects reflect differences in the countries themselves along with accidental factors of timing and external events, like the current crisis. Trade liberalization and openness to trade are usually viewed as key elements of successful growth, development strategies and perhaps a pattern to recovery from the crisis. However, trade policy may induce countervailing forces on income distribution, poverty alleviation, and human development. It seems to be the case for Latin America, the use of the word openness conceals a wish, if not an obligation, for the countries concerned to follow a freer trade policy looking for a sustainable recovery but the impacts on income and poverty are fundamentally different and a major concern.