Business Notes TRADE

Mexico's activist President, Carlos Salinas de Gortari, has cut tariffs and lifted other barriers to open his country's sheltered economy. Now he seems ready to take his boldest step of all. Bush Administration officials disclosed last week that Mexico will consider negotiating a free-trade agreement with the U.S. Though the Government has agreed to a similar pact with Canada, reaching an accord with Mexico may prove much tougher. Mexicans fear the arrangement would threaten their autonomy, while American workers are worried that it could trigger a flood of cheap labor into the U.S. Even so, a free- trade accord has appeal, since it could lead to a North American common market at a time when Europe is forging its own economic bloc.