The Mexican peso appreciated after Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in as president of Mexico late Tuesday morning.
Compared to its closing position on Monday, the peso depreciated on Tuesday morning to trade at 19.81 to the US dollar, according to currency website xe.com. However, the currency strengthened after Sheinbaum was sworn in as Mexico’s first woman president at around 11:30 a.m. Mexico City time.
Shortly after 6 p.m., the peso was trading at 19.63 to the greenback, an appreciation of almost 1% compared to its weakest position on Tuesday.
The peso hit an almost nine-year high of 16.30 to the dollar in April, but the currency has taken a battering in recent months, largely due to concerns over the federal government’s judicial reform, which was approved by Congress, and promulgated by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador in September.
Investors are also concerned about other constitutional reform proposals that López Obrador sent to Congress in February and which are likely to be approved in the near future given that Lopez Obrador’s Morena party is still the ruling party under Sheinbaum and, with its allies, has a supermajority in the Chamber of Deputies and a virtual supermajority in the Senate.
In her first speech as president, Sheinbaum once again sought to reassure investors that they have nothing to worry about.
“I say with complete clarity: be assured that investments of national and foreign shareholders are safe in our country,” she said.
The president also pledged to “take advantage of the [USMCA] trade agreement with the United States and Canada to continue promoting the relocation of companies” to Mexico.
Among other remarks, Sheinbaum said that her government will respect the autonomy of the Bank of Mexico and implement a “responsible” fiscal policy.
There are fears that Mexico could squander what has been described as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to attract high levels of foreign investment due to the implementation of the new judicial reform and other constitutional changes, including a proposal to disband a number of government autonomous agencies.
Sheinbaum has expressed support for all the proposals put forth by her predecessor and has rejected claims by opponents that their implementation poses a risk to Mexican democracy and the country’s capacity to prosper in the coming years.
Shortly after her convincing election victory in June, the 62-year-old former Mexico City mayor declared that “national and foreign investors have nothing to worry about.”
“Their investments in Mexico are safe, obviously within the framework of our laws,” Sheinbaum said on June 11.
Vidal Llerenas, who will serve as a deputy economy minister in the Sheinbaum administration, said in late September that foreign direct investment in Mexico could increase by US $3-$4 billion each year during the 2024–30 term of the new president.
Mexico News Daily
