The Economist recently praised Mexico, in an article titled “Open For Business,” by highlighting how even “in difficult times, Mexico and its firms retain their faith in globalization.” It is easy to resort to protectionist tendencies when pressures like low oil prices and China’s economic slowdown throw a wrench in markets across the world. But Mexico has stayed on the path of free trade and easing restrictions to conduct international business that began with the landmark North America Free Trade Agreement in 1994.

This commitment has only ramped up since, with the nation joining the World Trade Organization, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), MERCOSUR, and the Pacific Alliance. In addition, Mexico has free trade agreements with Japan, Israel, Colombia, Chile Panama, Peru, Bolivia, Uruguay, the entire European Union, and all of Central America.

Most recently, it became a member in the new Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) by signing on in February. This represents both another way in which Mexico is staying on the course of globalization but also highlights its ongoing pledge to open up those industries that have remained somewhat closed off even after all the other agreements.

“The Mexican economy began to open in earnest with the North American Free Trade Agreement. That was a revolutionary moment,” said Dan Restrepo, a former special assistant to President Obama and senior director for Western Hemisphere affairs at the National Security Council from 2009 to 2012. “But there were certain sectors of the Mexican economy that remained very closed. And what you see through the structural reforms that [President Entrique] Peña Nieto did in his first year in office — the Pacific Alliance integration and now the TPP — is the last segments of the economy that were walled off now being brought into the modern, globalized economy. That will benefit Mexico.”

Among those that will benefit are the tech sector, says Carlos Amaral, a director at the Dallas-based consulting firm Alsbridge. He believes that the entrance into the TPP is yet another reason that companies in the IT world should feel at ease working in the nation. “On the whole, the TPP agreement should benefit the Mexican tech sector. It creates the potential for an increase in business from U.S. firms looking for a strong nearshore location,” said Amaral.

One important point, however, is that Mexican tech firms do need to be aware of the TPP provisions related to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). “Under the agreement,” said Amaral, “service providers are responsible for validating and confirming DMCA enforcement, and are subject to financial penalties for violations. As such, they need to implement the right mechanism to ensure that they follow the agreement.”

Minor issues aside, though, an open Mexico is a better Mexico. The DMCA complexities are key to understand, and some companies will need to learn to navigate new guidelines and best practices. But by being part of the TPP, the nation is in a position to help determine what those regulations consist of — rather than having to adjust to a global playbook that has been imposed upon it.

“Mexico, by being part of TPP, has aligned itself with the rule writers, the folks who are trying to create this structured environment in the Asia-Pacific — the fastest-growing region of the world — to benefit from greater integration,” said Restrepo. “In the near term, there will be dislocations. There always are. But in the short-, medium-, and long-term, participation in these outward-looking, innovation-forcing agreements is good for Mexico.”