President Sheinbaum gives reporters a sneak preview last week of the cover of her book, which she says documents the "extraordinary moments that intertwine my life with the history of our country, to which I have dedicated myself. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro.com)
President Claudia Sheinbaum’s autobiographical account of the weeks leading up to her inauguration as Mexico’s first female president is available in bookstores now.
The book, Sheinbaum’s first, is entitled “Diario de una Transición Histórica” (“Diary of a Historic Transition”) and costs 298 pesos (US $16). The cover features a photograph of Sheinbaum and then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador in the National Palace a few days after she had been elected to be his successor.
Sheinbaum has described the book as an intimate diary of the farewell tour she made with her predecessor as he prepared to leave office.
The president also said the book represents her commitment to the people of Mexico. “It bears the personal seal of my conviction, my sense of duty and the deep love I feel for my country,” she said.”
Les presento mi primer libro como presidenta de México: Diario de una transición histórica. El fin de semana estará disponible en librerías. pic.twitter.com/7CSjNIJKQX
“Diary of a Historic Transition” provides an inside look at the private meetings between Sheinbaum and López Obrador as they prepared for the historic change of government, the first time a woman ascended to Mexico’s presidency.
From June 14 to Sept. 27 of last year, the final 16 weekends of López Obrador’s six-year term, the incoming and outgoing presidents spent more than 500 hours together.
“This is the diary of one of the most extraordinary moments that intertwine my life with the history of our country, to which I have dedicated myself,” Sheinbaum said while displaying a copy of the book to reporters. “It is also a tribute to the man who transformed public life in Mexico: Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a leader who, with intelligence, love and devotion to the public, knew how to guide the course of a nation, fully determined to alter its destiny.”
Sheinbaum also discusses her election relative to López Obrador’s: “He is the origin. We are the continuity.”:
In a book review for the newspaper El País, Jorge Zepeda Patterson says Sheinbaum’s “admiration and affection for the role of the founder who made possible the movement she now leads goes beyond mere formal respect.”
The president also talked about the process of writing the book.
“It took quite a while because I had to sort through all the notes taken during the transition process,” she said. “We finally submitted everything, edited and corrected, to the publisher about a month and a half or two months ago.”
The "Voces sin Fronteras" event took place at the Tijuana Cultural Center and involved more than 60 women from Mexican and U.S. choirs performing together on World Singing Day. (Coro Meraki/Facebook)
It seemed like a simple proposal: bring together two choruses from neighboring cities for a joint celebration of World Singing Day. But in this case, the choruses were separated by an international border, and making this happen was anything but simple.
The event on October 18th at the Tijuana Cultural Center, northwest Mexico’s prime cultural venue, took months of planning and support from many quarters. It tested our endurance, our creativity, organizational skills and, at times, our patience. But the efforts paid off, and the result was glorious, as the voices of more than 60 women from the U.S. and Mexico rang out in a 90-minute concert titled “Voces Sin Fronteras,” or Voices Without Borders.
Uniendo nuestras voces. -Coro Femenino Meraki.
Borders divide, but they can also unite. Overlooked in the contentious debates over illegal immigration are the millions of people who routinely cross the border legally to work, attend school, shop, see friends and family, seek medical care and attend sports and cultural events. And in this case, to sing.
This event was many months in the making. It all started in December 2023 with Daria Abreu, the Cuban-born director and founder of Tijuana’s Coro Femenino Meraki, an all-female singing group founded in 2020 with support from the nonprofit Promotora Bellas Artes. She reached out to Kathleen Hansen, artistic director of the San Diego Women’s Chorus, a 125-member lesbian-identified musical community founded in 1987 that’s made up of LGBTQ+ and straight ally members.
Both choruses are members of the Choral Consortium of San Diego, a broad umbrella with more than 80 groups of all sizes and musical styles. While most members are from San Diego, a small number of Mexican groups have joined the consortium as well.
Abreu’s dream of a binational concert turned into a plan earlier this year. With help from the Mexican Consulate in San Diego, authorities at the federally run Tijuana Cultural Center offered the center’s Sala Federico Campbell as a performance space. And what better day to put on a concert than October 18th, World Singing Day — an annual global sing-along that “encourages people to put aside their differences and celebrate what we all share as human beings.”
As a participant and organizer (I’m a member of the Meraki chorus), I can say this: We are a small group founded in 2020 of no more than 20 members, and so grateful for the willingness of our guests to take a chance on us and accept this invitation to sing in another country with total strangers.
Those who joined us that day were adventurous women who woke at the crack of dawn to travel to the border from all corners of San Diego: North Park, Normal Heights, Poway, Ramona, Escondido and beyond. Onstage, they didn’t flinch when asked to perform a small cha-cha step to the rhythm of a song they were still learning.
The event had the support of multiple choirs, a nonprofit organization and the Mexican Consulate in San Diego, but participants and organizers still faced many challenges in making it happen. (Sandra Dibble)
The gratitude went both ways. Throughout the day, I heard “thank you” from so many of the San Diego singers. And on several occasions, I saw them moved to tears by the generous gestures of my fellow Meraki choristers, who greeted them with hot coffee, fruit, pan dulce, sandwiches and a song from central Mexico (“Madrigal” by Ventura Romero) as they arrived at 9 a.m. to begin the day.
Crossing the Western Hemisphere’s busiest border at San Ysidro can have its challenges, as members of the San Diego Women’s Chorus found out. Their delegation of close to 40 people showed up as instructed by 7:30 a.m. at Mexico’s El Chaparral entrance, only to find out it was closed and that the only option was to trudge a half-mile to the eastern entrance, and then again for several blocks in Tijuana to catch a bus. Returning to San Diego through the U.S. pedestrian line, they endured a 90-minute wait to reach the inspection booths.
These San Diego guests proved to be patient and appreciative musical ambassadors as they navigated the uncertainties of the day. Together, our choruses showed that we can strengthen cross-border ties and shine a different light on our shared border, no matter the political climate. For a few precious moments on that Saturday, we were two countries, but one chorus.
Sandra Dibble has been crossing the San Diego-Tijuana border since 1994. She is a member of Tijuana’s Coro Femenino Meraki and president of the San Diego Choral Consortium.
A field of cempasúchil flowers in Oaxaca. (Anne Bruce)
I heard the legend as a child: Xóchitl and Huitzilin met as children. They grew up and played together for years. Over time, an infinite love blossomed between them. When they came of age, they married and lived happily. Their union, however, was short-lived: As a warrior and leader of their people, Huitzilin had to leave for war. Xóchitl was left alone, hoping her husband would return one day. At that moment, Xóchitl didn’t know she would never see Huitzilin again.
This is the Mexica (better known as Aztec) legend of the cempasúchil, the “flower of the dead” in Mexican folk culture.
What is the legend of the cempasúchil flower?
Cempasúchil flowers are the spiritual lighthouses, following the Mexica tradition, that guide the souls of the departed back home. Here’s everything you need to know about the Mexican “flower of the dead.” (Marco Carmona/Pexels)
According to the story, a few days after Huitzilin had gone to war, a soldier knocked on Xóchitl’s door. As she welcomed him in, she realized that the man was dressed in ceremonial attire to honor the dead. Ominous news was on his tongue: Her husband had died in battle.
Devastated by grief, Xóchitl decided to climb a high mountain to beg the sun god, Tonatiuh, to let her see Huitzin again. Seeing how distressed she was by her misfortune, Tonatiuh granted her a visit with her beloved.
He turned Xóchitl into a golden-orange flower that shed light during the nights. For months, the flower-woman remained closed, until a hummingbird landed on its stem.
Feeling the bird upon her, she recognized the soft touch of Huitzilin, who had been drawn to her by her scent. Instantly, the field surrounding her blossomed with an orange glow. Thousands of similar shoots emerged from the earth and illuminated the night with a radiance no one had ever seen before. Over the years, people began to call it cempoalxóchitl: the 20-petaled flower.
What is the cempasúchil’s pre-Hispanic symbolism?
Etymologically, cempasúchil translates to “20-petaled flower,” based on the Náhuatl cempoalxóchitl. This term is composed of cempohualli, which translates as “20,” and xóchitl, or “flower.”
In traditional Mexica narrative, the flower’s intense yellow or orange color came directly from the sun. Cempasuchil’s golden-orange glow and unique aroma were said to guide departed souls back to a ceremonial banquet for them, prepared by their living relatives.
Mexica legend says that the cempasúchil flower emerged from the ground as a gift from the sun god Tonatiuh to allow the souls of two lovers to finally meet again. (Marco Ramos/Pexels)
Hence, from time immemorial, theTagetes erecta (the scientific name for the cempasúchil flower) has been used todecorate altars of the dead in different parts of Mexico, mainly during the first two days of November.
Cempasúchil flowers in the Day of the Dead festivities
Today, this plant, native to Mesoamerica, can be found growing wild in various ecosystems in Mexico. It’s also found in Central American countries, including Panama, Honduras and El Salvador. It can grow as tall as 1 meter, and its buds can reach 5 centimeters in diameter. This extremely versatile plant easily adapts to its surroundings, flourishing in temperate oak forests or in a tropical rainforest’s humidity.
Cempasúchil production in Mexico is primarily focused on the flower’s ceremonial purposes. In late October and the first days of November, the country is covered in an orange blanket of cempasúchil as people across Mexico invoke the spirits of their loved ones during Day of the Dead festivities.
Even centuries after the tradition began, cempasúchil flowers still brighten Mexicans’ altars today, lighting the way back home for the souls of the departed so that, for just one night a year, we can see our loved ones again.
Guillermo del Toro's "Frankenstein" is an excellent spooky movie option this Halloween. But why stop there? (Ken Woroner/Netflix)
For lovers of horror, mystery, gore and the grotesque, Halloween is the best time of year. It’s when romance and comedy give way to marathons of disturbing and terrifying films.
To mark the day, beyond watching the genre classics, why not also try marathoning the films of Mexican writer/director Guillermo del Toro — “The Monster Maker,” a true lover of dark and disturbing fantasies?
Over the years, del Toro and his team of collaborators have created some of the most disturbing yet also surprisingly moving gothic horror films in existence. While his work does not fit into traditional horror or the slasher stereotype, no modern filmmaker has been more interested in monsters, the gothic, the macabre and the misunderstood. Del Toro’s body of work is a celebration of horror that transcends simple jump scares, opting to delve deeply into the supernatural to explore political and social themes and the cruelty and beauty of human nature.
Not sure where to start or what to watch again? Here are five spine-chilling del Toro options for you to stream. From “The Devil’s Backbone” to “Frankenstein,” each of the del Toro films we recommend offers a unique kind of horror that’s perfect for this time of year.
After directing “Cronos” and “Mimic,” del Toro embarked on the Spanish-Mexican coproduction, “El Espinazo del Diablo” (The Devil’s Backbone), a perfect combination of supernatural horror, historical drama and magical realism.
Set in an orphanage during the final days of the Spanish Civil War, the film tells the story of Carlos (Fernando Tielve), a 12-year-old orphan who soon discovers that his new home is haunted by the ghost of a boy who died under suspicious circumstances. Del Toro manages to offer us an evocative portrait of loss, pain, childhood trauma and human cruelty while creating a revealing metaphor for Franco’s Spain.
Considered the great precursor to “Pan’s Labyrinth,” “The Devil’s Backbone” is undoubtedly one of the director’s most personal films and an outstanding Spanish horror option to watch this Halloween.
PAN'S LABYRINTH - Official Trailer - Directed by Guillermo del Toro
With three Academy Awards, a slew of international accolades and an impressive 95% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, “El Laberinto del Fauno”(Pan’s Labyrinth) definitively launched Guillermo del Toro’s career.
This dark fairy tale, set in fascist Spain toward the end of its civil war, follows the young and dreamy Ofelia (Ivana Baquero). Her stepfather, Captain Vidal (Sergi López), is on a bloody hunt for the last remaining groups of resistance fighters. In her attempt to escape her stepfather’s aggression and the environment around her of postwar oppression, Ofelia immerses herself in the wonders of her mind, where she soon finds herself wandering through a mythical labyrinth. There, she meets a disturbing faun, and the encounter marks the beginning of a journey filled with creatures, puzzles and challenges to overcome.
In essence, the film contrasts the cruel and grim world of the Spanish Civil War with the teenager’s fantasy world, highlighting how the imagination can serve as a refuge in times of great violence. Although it’s not a conventional horror film, its oppressive atmosphere and monsters — the Pale Man remains terrifying almost two decades later — make it another ideal alternative for this spooky season.
Stream on: Netflix, Amazon Prime Video. Buy or rent on: Apple TV+.
Del Toro’s venture into gothic romance, “Crimson Peak,” centers on Edith Cushing (Mia Wasikowska), an aspiring writer who is dragged by her new husband, Sir Thomas Sharpe (Tom Hiddleston), to a gloomy and isolated English mansion where he lives with his sister. Throughout the film, Edith is tormented by ghosts who, at first, seem to want to harm her. Little by little, however, we discover that they actually are warning her about the sinister secrets of Thomas and his poisonous sister, Lucille (Jessica Chastain). Caught between ancient vendettas and power games, Edith will have to fight with all her strength to preserve her life.
While on the surface it’s a scary story set in a haunted house amid specters, the film explores ideas about the ambiguity of monsters, the effects of unresolved trauma and the nature of evil. “Crimson Peak” leaves its indelible mark on viewers with its bold exploration of forbidden love and the “horrors committed in the name of love.” For those who don’t tolerate intense scares well, this delightfully gothic film could be an excellent viewing option.
Stream on: Netflix. Buy or rent on: Apple TV+, Google Play.
THE SHAPE OF WATER | Official Trailer | FOX Searchlight
Winner of the Oscar for Best Picture and the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival, “The Shape of Water” is a tale of love and monsters, filmed with unquestionable beauty and delicacy.
In the early 1960s, in the midst of the Cold War, Elisa Esposito (Sally Hawkins), a lonely woman who is mute, spends her days cleaning a top-secret U.S. lab. Her routine is disrupted when she discovers a strange aquatic creature being mistreated by unscrupulous scientists and decides to do something about it.
“The Shape of Water” is a frankly strange and hypnotic masterpiece that’s worth watching on Halloween or whenever, especially for those who are passionate about unconventional stories.
Stream on: Netflix, Disney+. Buy or rent on: Amazon Video, Apple TV+, Google Play.
Frankenstein | Guillermo del Toro | Official Trailer | Netflix
Described as a “beautiful gothic monument,” del Toro’s latest, “Frankenstein,” has caused a sensation among critics and viewers alike. This new adaptation — which you’ll have to find in the theaters if you want to see it this Halloween — interprets Mary Shelley’s iconic 1818 text as a story of abandonment and parental neglect. One of the film’s great successes is that it retains many of the sensibilities of the original material. The talented Oscar Isaac plays the eccentric scientist Victor Frankenstein, obsessed with defeating death, while a convincing Jacob Elordi plays his creation as a tormented soul struggling to be accepted and loved.
Earning effusive praise for its operatic spectacle, production design and psychological and emotional horror, “Frankenstein” is another must-see this Halloween.
Del Toro’s “Frankenstein” had a limited theatrical release on Oct. 17. It will premiere on Netflix on November 7.
Carolina Alvarado is a Venezuelan journalist and has devoted much of her career to creative writing, university teaching and social work. She has been published in Lady Science, Latina Media, Global Comment, Psiquide, Cinetopic, Get me Giddy and Reader’s Digest, among others.
“First time I’ve eaten pozole, you guys,” Rosalía said, looking at her cellphone camera before having her first taste. “It’s treacherous, huh? It’s spicy. But it’s really good, I’m surprised it has lettuce,” she said on a live broadcast that went viral on TikTok.
Besides pozole, she tried enfrijoladas, flautas and horchata with cinnamon on top. While she said she liked everything, she also admitted – with laughter – that she doesn’t tolerate spicy food very well, creating an atmosphere of sympathy among her party.
Clips revealed the singer had dinner at La Casa de Toño, one of the capital’s most popular Mexican food chains. She was accompanied by twins Milton and Emilio de la Rosa, from the Mexican group Latin Mafia, along with other friends.
Users’ reactions on social media were mixed, with some expressing pride in the national cuisine, while others expressed disappointment for not being at the restaurant to see her. Fans who recognized her approached her and asked for photos and autographs. She was reportedly nice and friendly to everyone.
Rosalía is visiting Mexico City to promote her upcoming musical release, LUX. Shortly before her meal, she had a brief encounter with some of her fans, who had the exclusive privilege of listening to the album before its release on all digital platforms.
@ejecentral ¡La Motomami se come unas enfrijoladas! La cantante española Rosalía sorprendió a la CDMX al ser captada cenando en el icónico restaurante La Casa de Toño (Parque Delta) junto al grupo Latin Mafia. La artista disfrutó de pozole, enfrijoladas y agua de horchata, mostrando en TikTok Live su fascinación por los antojitos mexicanos. Ya es oficialmente fan de las garnachas! Entérate qué hace en México en EjeCentral. #Rosalia#LaCasaDeToño#CDMX#Motomami#Pozole♬ sonido original – EjeCentral
“The album is inspired by holy women, by feminine mysticism, by saints from around the world,” she said. “And I spent a year alone writing the lyrics, which is why the overall presentation and everything about the lyrics, the words of the album, is so important. And it took a lot of work; it’s also a team effort.”
The singer also wished her Mexican fans a “Happy Day of the Dead Week,” which was followed by cheers from the audience.
This is not the first time Rosalía has shared her love for Mexican food. Three years ago, after a performance in Mexico, she asked users on X to share the recipe for shrimp aguachile.
“Oh my God, it’s so good. I tried it for the first time on this trip [to Mexico] and it would be a dream come true to learn how to prepare it,” she wrote. Thousands of people shared their recipes, and the Mazatlán soccer team invited her to the city of Sinaloa, claiming that it is home to the best aguachiles in the country.
Sheinbaum said that her government's priority in its upcoming talks with the French president would be to push for the repatriation of pre-Hispanic codices that are in France. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
The United States’ aggressive maritime pursuit of alleged drug traffickers and an upcoming visit to Mexico by French President Emmanuel Macron were among the issues President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke about at her Thursday morning press conference.
Here is a recap of the president’s Oct. 30 mañanera.
Navy still searching for survivor of US strikes, says Sheinbaum
Sheinbaum said that she was informed by the navy that it was required to continue the search for at least 96 hours.
“That’s what the international rules say … and that’s what [the navy] is doing, in accordance with international law,” she said.
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who announced Monday’s lethal strikes on social media, said on Wednesday evening that the U.S. military had “carried out a lethal kinetic strike on yet another narco-trafficking vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) in the Eastern Pacific.”
Earlier today, at the direction of President Trump, the Department of War carried out a lethal kinetic strike on yet another narco-trafficking vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization (DTO) in the Eastern Pacific.
He said that “four male narco-terrorists were aboard the vessel — and killed — during the strike, which was conducted in international waters.”
Hegseth didn’t specify where in the Eastern Pacific the attack occurred.
Asked what information she had about the latest strike, Sheinbaum only said that Navy Minister Raymundo Pedro Morales would meet with a “counterpart” from the U.S. Coast Guard later on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the president voiced her opposition to the lethal strikes the U.S. military has recently been carrying out in both the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
“We don’t agree with these interventions,” said Sheinbaum, who expressed the view that suspected drug traffickers at sea should be arrested rather than killed.
Ebrard represents Mexico at APEC meetings
Donald Trump, Xi Jinping and other world leaders traveled this week to South Korea, where Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings are taking place. Sheinbaum, however, stayed at home, leaving Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard to represent Mexico on the world stage.
The United States has accused Mexico of violating the terms of the USMCA free trade pact through the use of a range of non-tariff barriers to trade.
Sheinbaum said that Mexico and the U.S. were nearing the completion of their review of the non-tariff barriers and would soon be able to move onto “what concerns us, which are the [U.S.] tariffs on steel and vehicles.”
In 2025, the Trump administration has imposed tariffs on a range of imports from Mexico, including steel, aluminum, copper, tomatoes and light vehicles.
The U.S. government had planned to increase its 25% tariff on non-USMCA compliant Mexican goods this week, but Sheinbaum announced on Monday that she had reached an agreement with Trump to extend bilateral negotiations on trade and tariffs by a few weeks.
Accordingly, the slated increase of the U.S. tariff to 30% didn’t take effect.
Ebrard is well-versed in representing Mexico on the world stage, having attended numerous international meetings and summits while foreign minister during the presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a reluctant international traveler.
In South Korea, the economy minister also spoke to U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and held meetings with officials from countries including Japan, Australia and Indonesia.
Emmanuel Macron to visit Mexico next week
Sheinbaum revealed that Macron would visit Mexico on Friday, Nov. 7.
“Do you remember he was going to come [earlier in the year]? He’s coming on the 7th,” she said.
Sheinbaum said that her government’s priority in its upcoming talks with the French president would be to push for the repatriation of pre-Hispanic codices that are in France.
“We want them to come back to Mexico, that’s our main interest,” she said.
Sheinbaum added that Macron would “obviously” be accompanied by French businesspeople and would meet with Mexican businesspeople.
“But our greatest interest is the repatriation of these codices that are very important for Mexico,” she said.
Asked whether she and Macron would hold a joint press conference, Sheinbaum said she assumed they would.
“The schedule is being agreed upon; the visit will be very brief,” she said.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
The Cox Group's plan to provide energy through solar parks and wind farms is predicated on Nuevo León's ongoing industrial boom. As the company's founder and president put it, "We want to be part of that growth." (Cuartoscuro)
The Cox Group, a Spanish firm specializing in clean energy generation and transmission, has announced a historic investment of US $4.2 billion for new solar and wind farms in the northern state of Nuevo León.
For its sheer size and focus on renewable energy, Cox’s move is one of Mexico’s most significant investments of the year, directly impacting employment, green infrastructure and industrial modernization in the north of the country.
Cox, a Spanish company, specializes in renewable energy production and is well-positioned to use wind power to help meet Nuevo Leon’s increasing needs. (Saúl López/Cuartoscuro)
The projects, which will be located in the municipalities of El Carmen, Apodaca, Dulces Nombres and Sabinas, as well as the state capital of Monterrey, are expected to generate more than 4,000 temporary jobs during the construction phase, and 250 permanent positions.
Governor Samuel García and Enrique Riquelme, founder and president of the Cox Group, said during the investment announcement that the move is part of a comprehensive strategy that encompasses water treatment and reuse, gas cogeneration, and energy efficiency.
Riquelme explained that following the acquisition of Iberdrola México (formerly one of the leading private companies in the electricity sector in Mexico), a significant portion of Cox’s investment is already concentrated in Nuevo León. With the new move, the group seeks to broaden its renewable energy generation portfolio and help meet the energy and water demands resulting from the manufacturing boom in the region.
“We want to be part of that growth, get on board, and contribute our grain of sand to solving the need for water and energy, so it can continue to grow,” he said.
To that end, Riquelme announced that Cox is planning to establish its headquarters for the Americas in Nuevo León, which will coordinate all operational plants across the continents. Cox had already announced a strategic investment of up to US $10.7 billion in Mexico for the period 2025-2030.
In celebrating the announcement, Governor García said, “We continue to be No. 1 in attracting investment, and with Cox we are moving toward a cleaner, more competitive and more sustainable energy model.”
The Energy Ministry weighed in by stating, “We welcome the investment in our country by Cox, a Spanish company specializing in renewable energy and water, whose profile aligns with the expansion plans of the electricity sector and the goals of the Plan México.”
The USCC also accused the SAT of conduct that is inconsistent with Mexican law and international best practices. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce (USCC) criticized Mexico’s judicial reform and accused the Mexican tax agency SAT of “aggressive and inconsistent tax enforcement practices” in a lengthy document submitted to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR).
In response to the USTR’s request for public comments on the USMCA ahead of the 2026 review of the trilateral North American trade pact, the USCC prepared a 39-page document — including a detailed letter — that refers to a wide range of issues and makes a number of recommendations.
In a section of the Oct. 28 document entitled “Factors Impacting the Investment Climate in North America,” the USCC states that the U.S. business community “is facing increased uncertainty that affects companies’ ability to make long-term plans and investment.”
“As previously stated, in Mexico, the recent judicial reform allowing for the direct election of judges has put at risk the government’s obligations to provide to all the right to a competent, independent, and impartial judicial system and raised concerns about investment protections,” the USCC said.
Government critics argued that they would result in the election of judges who lack relevant experience, and who are politically loyal to, or at least sympathetic to, the current federal government and the Morena party founded by former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
The USCC also said that U.S. companies are increasingly subject to “practices by Mexico’s tax authority (SAT) that lack transparency and due process and are not consistent with Mexican law or international best practices.”
Among the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s grumbles with the SAT are “excessive” audits, a denial of inter-company payment deductions and retroactive penalties. (Victoria Valtierra/Cuartoscuro)
“These actions create a significant level of uncertainty and risk of unfair penalties — a practice that SAT is using to extract additional revenues,” said the USCC, which describes itself as “the world’s largest business organization.”
“Although the specifics of each case may vary, common practices include unreasonable timeframes for responding, differing or opposing views or criteria for the same issue, and unreasonable levels of documentary proof,” the U.S. Chamber said in a letter signed by Neil Herrington, senior vice president for the Americas Department at the USCC.
“… SAT’s aggressive and inconsistent tax enforcement practices, including excessive audits, denial of inter-company payment deductions, and retroactive penalties, have created uncertainty and increased costs for U.S. businesses,” the USCC added.
“These actions undermine compliance with international best practices and risk invalidating the benefits of the USMCA, necessitating urgent attention to ensure fair and transparent tax administration,” the U.S. Chamber said.
The USCC also asserted that the elimination of independent regulatory bodies “has weakened transparency and regulatory oversight” in Mexico. The Federal Economic Competition Commission and the Energy Regulatory Commission were among seven autonomous bodies that were recently disbanded after Congress approved their abolishment.
The USCC said that “lengthy regulatory delays and burdensome procedures also pose significant market access barriers for U.S. companies operating in Mexico and Canada.”
Additionally, the USCC raised concerns about the recently approved amparo law reform, saying that it “limits the ability of individuals and companies to file injunctions against arbitrary and discretionary decisions from the Mexican State.”
USCC identifies 3 ‘priorities’ for USMCA review
On the first page of its document, the USCC states that “the USMCA has provided substantial benefits to American workers, farmers, ranchers, and companies across the breadth of the U.S. economy.”
“More than 13 million American jobs depend on trade with Canada and Mexico, and the agreement has fostered U.S. economic growth in ways that support many additional high-wage jobs,” the USCC said.
It also wrote that Canada and Mexico are “the source of critical imports … that are essential to the competitiveness of U.S. industry.”
“Many of these inputs are unavailable from domestic sources at reasonable prices or in sufficient quantities, and other imports are low-value consumer goods that a high-wage economy such as the United States cannot and should not attempt to produce domestically,” the USCC said.
With regard to the upcoming review of the trade pact that superseded NAFTA in 2020, the U.S. Chamber urged the Trump administration to focus on three objectives, or priorities.
Priority 1: Maintain and Strengthen U.S. Trade Ties to Canada and Mexico.
Priority 2: Secure a Renewed Commitment to Full Compliance with the USMCA.
Priority 3: Provide Certainty and Confidence to Investors by Expediting a Transparent and Orderly Joint Review.
With regard to “Priority 1,” USCC said that “retaining the trilateral character” of the USMCA is “essential.”
“Business benefits substantially from trade rules that apply broadly and consistently across the breadth of the North American economies; compliance costs soar when inconsistent rules apply in different relationships,” the U.S. Chamber said.
There has been some muted speculation that bilateral trade agreements between the three countries of North America could replace the USMCA, but such an eventuality appears extremely unlikely. However, at least some of the negotiations associated with the USMCA review will take place on a bilateral rather than trilateral basis.
With regard to “Priority 2,” the USCC said it has “long argued that a trade agreement is not worth the paper it is written on without meaningful enforcement.”
The chamber asserted that Mexico “presents compliance challenges in a manner that undermines trade and investment opportunities” for the United States and U.S. companies.
“Mexico presents significant compliance-related challenges in areas including agriculture, digital trade, energy, financial services, intellectual property, regulatory and government procurement, and trade facilitation — including several non-tariff barriers,” the USCC said.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said earlier this month that Mexico is not fully complying with the terms of the USMCA, which U.S. President Donald Trump has violated himself this year by imposing various tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada.
With regard to “Priority 3,” the USCC said that “among the chief benefits of the USMCA for the U.S. business community are clear and stable rules of the road.”
“… The agreement has already established strong measures that preserve duty-free trade; streamline customs procedures and commitments on risk assessment and science-based regulation … and facilitate digital trade, among other areas. These areas should, at a minimum, be preserved,” the USCC said.
The USCC’s ‘recommendations for action’
The USCC recommended that the Trump administration “consider a number of modest steps to update some provisions in the USMCA.”
Among its “recommendations for action” were the creation of a trilateral “Committee on Digital Trade to focus on artificial intelligence and trusted technology” and the restoration of “important” intellectual property protections “as originally negotiated” in order to “bring Canada and Mexico closer to the high standard already set in U.S. law.”
While it said it wasn’t “recommending steps to modify the USMCA’s rules of origin,” the USCC said that any changes that are made “should be implemented in a manner that ensures the rules are clear, implementable, minimize trade disruptions, and maintain North American competitiveness.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
To become the first Latin American to take the gold in the event, Yareli Acevedo had to beat out two former Olympic medalists. (Gobierno de México)
Mexico City native Yareli Acevedo won gold in the women’s points race at the 2025 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Santiago, Chile, over the weekend, making history as the first Latin American to capture the title.
The 24-year-old student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) finished with 63 points, edging out two medalists from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris: Anna Morris of Great Britain with 58 points and New Zealand’s Bryony Botha with 56 points.
Upon her return on Wednesday from the Championships in Chile, Acevedo posed for a photo at the airport with her family. (conadeoficial)
Finishing ahead of Morris was no mean feat, as the 30-year-old from Wales won two medals at last year’s world championships in Denmark, and one more last week in Chile.
Acevedo has become just the second Mexican ever to win a world track cycling title, following Nancy Contreras’ 2001 win in Belgium. A two-time Olympian, Contreras has been distinguished as one of Mexico’s “Leyendas Deportivas” (Sports Legends).
Acevedo returned to Mexico with a hero’s welcome, celebrated on Wednesday by the National Commission for Physical Culture and Sport (Conade) at Villas Tlalpan, an elite sports training center in Mexico City.
She showed her gold medal and expressed gratitude for the support received throughout her career.
“This medal is the result of all the work, effort and tears of these past years,” she said. “It’s the fruit of that entire journey.
“It’s a feeling I still haven’t processed,” she added. “It hasn’t sunk in yet.”
¡Oro para México🥇🇲🇽❤️!
Yareli Acevedo 🇲🇽 es CAMPEONA DEL MUNDO🥇🌍 en la prueba de puntos en el Mundial de Ciclismo de Pista 🚴♀️
— Fan México 🇲🇽 rumbo a LA2028 (@MLosAngeles2028) October 26, 2025
As a student at the Faculty of Accounting and Administration at UNAM, Acevedo must balance academics with her rapidly rising athletic career, which has included international wins in Turkey and Paraguay in 2025.
Her achievements include a gold medal at the last Pan American Games in 2023 in the omnium — a multi-race event often compared to a decathlon — along with a silver.
She recently ranked second worldwide in endurance events according to the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).
Her victory on Sunday covered 25 kilometers — 100 laps over a 250-meter track. Competitors raced in a single final, with points-earning sprints occurring every 10 laps; riders could also earn 20 points by gaining a lap on the field.
It’s a race that requires intense strategy, as athletes must decide when to put their mettle to the pedal.
“I knew it was all or nothing,” she said. “If my strategy failed, I would finish fifth, but if I went all out, I would become world champion. I was going all out; I had no strength left.
“That day, I pedaled with all of Mexico behind me, with my heart and a strong desire to succeed, and I did it. It has been an epic year for me.”
Looking ahead, Acevedo said her next goal is to qualify for the Olympic Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
Responding to a complaint, Profepa agents found tree stumps and avocado plants which were determined to pose an "imminent risk of ecological imbalance." (@Profepa_Mx/X)
Mexican authorities closed off five hectares within a protected biosphere reserve after discovering illegal logging had taken place and unauthorized orchards had been planted.
After receiving a complaint last week regarding logging and land use violations, the Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa) inspected a property in the influence zone of the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in the state of Michoacán.
At the site of the violations, trees were cleared to make room for avocado plants. (Profepa)
Within the ejido property in the municipality of Contepec, Profepa agents detected an avocado orchard comprising roughly 500 avocado plants between 0.80 and 1.80 meters tall and several lime trees on land designated as protected forest land.
Inspectors verified the damage to the oak-pine forest ecosystem in this 2.2-hectare area of the property, identifying 12 oak tree stumps that represent an estimated total volume of 3,616 cubic meters of wood.
In another area measuring 2.82 hectares in the upper part of the forest, Profepa agents counted approximately 470 avocado plants.
As the tree stumps did not have official markings identifying the responsible logging company, Profepa said in a press release, it determined that illegal logging had taken place and took appropriate action.
In a statement posted on X, Profepa confirmed the total temporary closure of both areas within the El Rincón section of the ejido because of “unauthorized timber harvesting and land use violations.”
“Due to the imminent risk of ecological imbalance, the closure of the affected surface area … was carried out,” it said. “Profepa works to ensure the protection and conservation of the monarch butterfly’s habitat, a natural heritage of Mexico and the world.”
The affected area is located within a designated “area of cooperation” on the western edge of the butterfly reserve, one of the 232 Protected Natural Areas in Mexico.
The Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve — comprising an area of 56,259 hectares about 100 kilometers northwest of Mexico City — was declared a federally protected natural area in 2000.
The reserve — also a UNESCO World Heritage Site — straddles the Michoacán-México state border and is one of the primary overwintering sites of the eastern population for this species. Millions of butterflies (Danaus plexippus plexippus) arrive in the reserve during their annual migration, which lasts from October through March.
The vegetation that predominates in the reserve consists of coniferous and oak forests, according to the National Commission of Natural Protected Areas (Conanp).
The forests of pine and drought-resistant oyamel fir trees produce microclimates that provide shelter for the butterflies when temperatures fall to freezing and/or when winter rains occur.
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