U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker today addressed U.S. and Mexican business leaders at the Sixth Annual U.S.-Mexico CEO Dialogue, which took place at the Organization of American States in Washington, D.C.  Secretary Pritzker addressed efforts to strengthen the commercial and economic relationship between the United States and Mexico and the importance of expanding and institutionalizing our bilateral partnership through the High-Level Economic Dialogue (HLED).

President Pena Nieto and President Obama launched the U.S.-Mexico High Level Economic Dialogue (HLED) three years ago with the goal of making it easier for our companies to do more business together.  The HLED represents an important recognition by both countries of the need to focus our bilateral relationship on expanding and strengthening what is already an incredibly deep and important commercial partnership.

During a roundtable discussion with business leaders, Secretary Prizker outlined the progress made by the HLED and the collective accomplishments of the U.S. and Mexico over the past few years including:

• Reinforced Our Border Infrastructure:  Through the completion of three new border projects, the U.S. and Mexico have reinforced our border infrastructure. Our countries have come together to build a new mechanism that coordinates and prioritizes future infrastructure projects based on data and will be accountable to the HLED leaders.  Nothing will unlock mutually beneficial binational trade between the U.S. and Mexico like a modern, efficient, secure border.
• Enhanced Energy Cooperation and Coordination:  We established the U.S.-Mexico Energy Business Council, which is comprised of senior business leaders who will work to create an open exchange of best practices in the energy sector. Combined with a modern border, an energy independent North America would strengthen the competitiveness of our region.
• Strengthened U.S.-Mexico Supply Chain:  We developed of a Cluster Mapping Project tool allowing business to understand supply chain linkages and better assess where to locate new facilities.

Secretary Pritzker also stressed the importance of institutionalizing the HLED and ensuring the important work and progress are sustained.  She called on U.S. and Mexican business leaders to develop and execute a cohesive strategy to enable the HLED to continue generating positive outcomes for our people and our businesses. In particular, she noted that a lot of progress has been made over the past three years, but all parties must remain committed to fulfill the basic goal of the HLED: to make it easier for companies to do more business together.