ABSTRACT
South American countries have experienced turbulent economic and political times. South America’s problems were compounded further by the ongoing insurgency and war on drug barons in Colombia, political turmoil in Peru and Venezuela, recessions in Chile in 1999, and economic and political problems in Paraguay and Uruguay. Some of the economic pain was mitigated by the two important trading blocks; Mercosur and the Andean Pact are the major trade alliances. The economic, political, and social problems in Central and South America impacted on the growth in the numbers of cars, trucks, and buses in use from 2002 to 2009. In 1995, members of the Mercosur free trade area set duties of 70% for vehicles imported from outside the area and duties of 2% for imported parts as part of an agreement on policies for the motor industries in Brazil and Argentina.
