Ben S Bernanke: Brief remarks
Speech by Mr Ben S Bernanke, Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System, at the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce Annual Gala, Washington DC,
12 May 2011.
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Good evening. I am very pleased to join the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce at
this gala dinner as its members look back on another year of working to build the mutually
beneficial trade and investment relationship between our two countries. The ties between
Mexico and the United States, both economic and cultural, are close and enduring - in no
small part, I am sure, because of the nearly 40 years of effort by the chamber. Thus, I am
especially honored to join Agustín Carstens, the distinguished governor of the Bank of
Mexico, in receiving your Good Neighbor Award. Thank you very much. Muchísimas gracias.
I have benefited from many years of contact and shared experiences with Agustín and his
colleagues at the central bank of Mexico. Some years ago, I had the opportunity to visit the
Bank of Mexico. As an economist, I found the visit very stimulating. But I must confess that I
enjoyed the trip as much for the cultural excursions as for the economics. I remember in
particular the beauty of Diego Rivera's monumental mural in the National Palace in Mexico
City. As with so many things, I credit my wife, Anna, who has a graduate degree in Latin
American literature, for my greater-than-average appreciation for the arts of Mexico and the
other Latin American nations. Perhaps Agustín might also credit his spouse, the writer
Catherine Mansell Carstens, for an appreciation of culture that encompasses both of our
nations.
I met Agustín not long after I came to Washington to serve on the Federal Reserve Board.
He was then a highly regarded deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund.
In late 2006, not long after I became Chairman, he became finance minister of Mexico, and
last year he succeeded Guillermo Ortiz as governor of the Bank of Mexico. We have had
many opportunities to meet and share views about the U.S., Mexican, and global economies.
My appreciation for his wisdom and insight as an economist and policymaker has grown with
each encounter.
Our productive and, I hope, mutually beneficial relationship reflects the close relationship of
the United States and Mexico. Our countries are tightly linked through trade. The United
States is by far Mexico's largest trading partner, accounting for about two-thirds of total
Mexican merchandise trade. Mexico, in turn, accounts for about one-eighth of the United
States' foreign trade, ranking it - along with Canada and China - among our three largest
trading partners. Not surprisingly, then, the growth of the Mexican and U.S. economies are
strongly related.
I'd be remiss if I concluded without noting Mexico's tremendous economic strides during the
past two decades. It has tamed the rampant inflation that prevailed before the 1990s, placed
its budget on a sounder footing, and avoided the repeated financial crises to which it was
once prone. Great credit goes to the thoughtful policies designed by Agustín and other
economic leaders in Mexico. Because the prosperity of our countries is so closely linked, we
in the United States benefit from their foresight and hard work.
Our economies continue to face challenges that require mutual cooperation. We are working
together to promote international financial stability, both bilaterally and through international
forums such as the Group of Twenty and the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision.
In closing, I deeply appreciate receiving the chamber's Good Neighbor Award. Agradezco
profundamente su gentileza.