Do you agree or disgree and why I think that free trade is beneficial to the economy. In the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in the Essentials of Economics textbook, it says that critics of NAFTA were too pessimistic and that "...since the passage of NAFTA, employment in the United States has increased by more than 38 million workers." and it has "Increased trade between Canada, Mexico, and the United States has enhanced the standard of living in all three countries," (408). The free trade through NAFTA has encouraged trade between countries and improved many different parts of our economy and other countries' economies. The benefits of trade are not felt evenly throughout the community. The rich will continue to have more access to the traded goods than the less fortunate will due to their excess of money and opportunities. The benefits of free trade are overall increased trade, greater access to lower priced, higher quality goods and services, and it all keeps our economy open and competitive. Consumers of foreign goods desire lower prices which come with free trade and would therefore boost the economy