Major components of agricultural competitiveness, including definitions, factors, and indicators of competitiveness, are discussed. The case of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is used to illustrate how factors have influenced the competitive position of the NAFTA countries. Traditional neoclassical trade theory is used to evaluate the impact of currency exchange rate fluctuations and trade preferences on agricultural competitiveness. Pre- and post-NAFTA market shares are evaluated for five agricultural commodities of importance to the southern United States. The results of these evaluations are compared with theoretical expectations and discussed with special emphasis on implications for future trade negotiations.
