Surveys find support for trade on the rise despite economic downturn
May 15, 2009
World Trade\Interactive
Several recent surveys have found that public support for open trade has increased substantially over the past year despite the ongoing global economic downturn. The shift in opinion could aid the Obama administration’s efforts to implement pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea.
A survey conducted March 31-April 21 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press found that 44% of respondents feel FTAs like NAFTA and the policies of the World Trade Organization are good for the U.S., up from 35% a year ago. Slightly more than a third (35%) say such agreements and policies are bad for the country, down from 48%. Interestingly, the public expressed more support for unspecified FTAs with other countries than it did for FTAs “like NAFTA and the policies of the World Trade Organization” specifically.
The survey found that the increase in support for FTAs and WTO policies has been particularly notable among Democrats, with the percentage of those in favor rising from 34% to 47% over the past year. Only 30% of Democrats view these agreements and policies negatively, down sharply from 50% last April. Opinion among Republicans has remained more stable: 41% see FTAs as a good thing, down just slightly from 42%, while 38% view them as a bad thing, a five percentage point decline.
According to a Pew Center press release, other recent national surveys have also found increases in support for foreign trade over the past year. In a survey conducted April 3-5 by CNN/Opinion Research Corp., 56% said they viewed foreign trade “more as an opportunity for economic growth through increased U.S. exports,” up from 41% in June 2008, while 40% said they viewed foreign trade as “a threat to the economy from foreign imports,” down from 51%. In an April 1-5 survey by CBS News/New York Times, 66% said “trade with other countries – both buying and selling products” is good for the U.S. economy, compared to the 58% who expressed that view in March 2008.
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