Texas will halt some vehicle inspections at the U.S.-Mexico border after Governor Greg Abbott’s crackdown provoked protests that halted some crucial food and equipment shipments, Bloomberg News reported. Abbott said Wednesday that the state government of Nuevo Leon in northern Mexico agreed to conduct safety inspections before U.S.-bound trucks reach the border. The inspections will continue in other sectors of the U.S.-Mexico line. Abbott said he acted in response to what he called U.S. President Joe Biden’s failure to repel undocumented migration and drug smuggling.
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Mexico
Mexican truckers blockaded a key Texas border crossing for a second day to protest Governor Greg Abbott’s stepped-up vehicle inspections, raising the specter of delivery disruptions for everything from avocados to auto parts, Bloomberg News reported. The growing queue of 18-wheelers on the Mexican side of the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge has choked crossings to a halt, according to a spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
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The nationality of who buys Citigroup's Mexican unit, known as Citibanamex, will not be the deciding factor despite the Mexican government's preference to sell the bank to a local buyer, an executive told local media in an interview published on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has made clear he wants to see investors "Mexicanize" the unit, floating names of Mexican billionaires like Ricardo Salinas of Banco Azteca and Carlos Hank Gonzalez of Banorte as potential buyers.
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Mexico's financial stability council said on Wednesday that there is risk of credit rating action on the ratings for the sovereign and state oil firm Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex). The council, which includes Mexico's finance minister, central bank governor and head of the banking commission, said a credit rating action on Pemex has been mitigated by measures to improve the tax take and higher oil prices.
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Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Thursday the Bank of Mexico had voted to raise its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 6.5%, speaking before the latest decision has been made public by the central bank, Reuters reported. "The Bank of Mexico took the decision yesterday unanimously, and we respect the Bank of Mexico's autonomy," Lopez Obrador said, speaking at a regular government news conference. Economists surveyed by Reuters forecast that the bank would vote to raise its benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 6.5% at its latest monetary policy decision.
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Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard and his Saudi Arabian counterpart on Wednesday agreed to strengthen bilateral economic relations on the first day of the diplomat's 10-day tour of the Middle East and India, Mexico's government said, Reuters reported. Ebrard and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud discussed investing in tourism and innovation, highlighting the need for a direct air route between Mexico and Saudi Arabia, the foreign ministry said in a statement.
Grupo Aeromexico announced today that it has completed its financial restructuring process, officially exiting chapter 11 under which it voluntarily entered in June 2020 in the midst of the worst crisis in the airline industry unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic, AviaciOnline reported. Since then, the company has been going through a series of changes in the company’s structure and multiple negotiations with creditors, workers and institutions. According to Aeromexico, the value of the capital after the restructuring is approximately USD 2,564 million.
Mexico's Grupo Aeromexico shares plunged for a fourth day in a row on Tuesday after nearly a fifth of the company's capital was sold at 1 cent a share through a public offering as part of its restructuring plan to exit bankruptcy, Reuters reported. Shares in Grupo Aeromexico, which operates the country's main airline and filed for bankruptcy in 2020, fell 27% to 59 cents and have lost about half their value in the past four days. Analysts have said trading in the shares has not reflected a creditor deal that was approved in January. Through the tender offer, which took place between Feb.
Mexico's year-on-year inflation likely accelerated in February after cooling slightly over the previous two months, a Reuters poll showed on Friday, reinforcing expectations that the central bank will continue to raise its key interest rate, Reuters reported. The consensus forecast of 11 analysts surveyed was for inflation to grow to 7.23% from 7.07% in January. If the prediction is correct, it would be the first increase since November, when inflation hit a 20-year high.
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After posting a loss for the fourth quarter, Credito Real said it was seeking to avoid a messy legal battle with creditors and would work to keep the company running following a default earlier this month, Bloomberg News reported. The lender that focuses on payroll loans posted a loss of 359.4 million pesos ($17.7 million) in the fourth quarter as cash levels dwindled to around $30 million. Credito Real failed to pay a 170 million Swiss franc ($184 million) bond due Feb. 9. After huddling with more than 100 representatives from creditors on Feb.
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