Olinia, which means “to move” in Nahuatl, will be designed as an affordable EV for Mexican families and young people, with competitive prices compared to other available brands. (Shutterstock)
This week, President Claudia Sheinbaum gave further details about her plans to produce an electric vehicle (EV) that is fully manufactured and assembled in Mexico.
The president first mentioned the EV during her inaugural speech at Mexico City’s Zócalo on Oct. 1. “Mexicans have creativity, determination and capacity to spare. So, we will produce ‘Olinia,’ a small, 100% electric, accessible car, designed by young people and assembled in our country,” Sheinbaum said.
Although the country has seen significant growth in the assembly of electric and hybrid vehicles, Mexico has yet to manufacture and export a domestically designed electric vehicle model.
Where will Olinia be manufactured?
During her morning press conference on Oct. 15, Sheinbaum said that Olinia could be produced in Sonora, one of several northern states with low electricity prices.
After the announcement, Governor Alfonso Durazo Montaño thanked Sheinbaum on his official X account for considering Sonora as a potential production hub for Olinia.
In a follow-up comment, he emphasized Sonora’s suitability for EV production, citing the state’s promising potential to develop its clean energy sector.
Sheinbaum said on Tuesday that her government is considering the northern state of Sonora for the production of the EV Olinia. (Cuartoscuro)
“[Olinia] will represent an important step towards the transition to clean energy in Mexico,” Durazo stressed.
How much will it cost?
Olinia, which means “to move” in Nahuatl, will be designed as an affordable EV for Mexican families and young people, with competitive prices compared to other available brands.
It is expected to cost under 500,000 pesos (US $25,000), a price tag lower than that of EVs currently available in the national market, such as the SEV E-Wan Cross, the BYD Dolphin Mini and the Tesla Model 3.
Is Olinia Mexico’s first-ever EV?
Although both Sheinbaum and Durazo said that Olinia would be Mexico’s first-ever EV, Olinia will be the second EV model to come out of Mexico.
Zacua launched production of the first Mexican-made EV in 2018. (Cuartoscuro)
In 2018, Zacua launched its manufacturing plant in Puebla to produce two models of EVs: the Zacua MX2 and the MX3. Both are exempt from paying tenencia (ownership tax) and from verificación (a vehicle inspection only applicable in Mexico City).
Zacua EVs can be bought in their Mexico City showroom or online.
It's Mexico's favorite curse word. What does it mean? (Facebook)
Se chingó un chingo de chongos.
It’s the most Mexican of curse words, and a phrasal verb whose meanings span the cultural spectrum. You may not like it, but you’d better make sure you understand it.
A Chingar a su Madre – expression Aggressive expression indicating that something has reached its conclusion, and that participants and onlookers should depart.
e.g. Y con eso terminamos, y a chingar a su madre.
It’s finished, please leave.
Chinga! – exclam
Darn!
Wow!
En Chinga – adj
Hurried, or under pressure.
Busy.
Chinga su Madre! – exclam ‘To hell with it!’ Used in the context of taking a quick decision.
e.g. La luz esta en roja, pero Chinga su Madre! Me la como.
The traffic light is red but Fuck it! I’m running the light.
Chingada Madre! – exclam Expressing frustration or annoyance. Best translated as ‘Ah damn it’!
Chingadera – noun Something without value or importance.
Chingarle – verb To put effort into something.
Chíngatelo – imperative
Finish whatever you are doing quickly, most commonly used with a beer.
Instructing an individual to steal something.
Chingarse– verb
To steal, shoplift or ‘nick’ something.
e.g. Se estan chingando la lana.
They are stealing the money.
To eat something quickly.
e.g. Se chingó ese bistec.
They scoffed that steak down.
Se chingó – expression It failed, or it is ruined.
Chingón –
adiVery common expression meaning that something is excellent, or of top quality.
e.g. Ese diccionionario esta chingón!
This dictionary is great!
nounAn impressive or powerful individual; the best in their own field.
e.g. El es un chingón
He’s the best.
Chingonería – noun Something of superb quality.
e.g. Que chingonería güey!
What a great thing dude!
This bull is about to have it’s “chingada” both given and taken. (@PrensaEsau/Twitter)
Hecho la Chingada – expression Moving at a very fast pace, most commonly referring to irresponsible motorists.
No me chingues – expression Don’t nag or bother me.
Me lleva la Chingada – exclam Expressing surprise, furstration or anger. In this expression, the chingada can also be substituted for other nouns: la fregada, la tiznada, la trampa, la trompada and also commonly, la verga.
Un Chingo – expression A lot, many or much. Can be used in reference to actions, as well as both countable and uncountable nouns.
e.g. Ella tiene un chingo de coches.
She has a lot of cars.
e.g. El tiene un chingo de dinero.
He has a lot of money.
e.g. Duele un chingo.
It hurts a lot.
Una Chinga – noun
A task which takes a great deal of effort.
A physical beating.
You can buy The Mexican Slang Dictionary on Amazon in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
MND readers can find the physical book stocked in bookstores:
Almost half of the phony bills identified between January and September were located in just three federal entities: Mexico City, México state and Jalisco. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
Double check your change!
More than 200,000 fake banknotes were detected in Mexico in the first nine months of 2024, according to the Bank of Mexico (Banxico).
The 20 and 50-peso bills, and most 100-peso ones, are made out of polymer, making them more difficult to forge. (Cuartoscuro)
The central bank reported that it identified 224,390 counterfeit bills between January and September.
That means an average of around 822 fake notes were detected every day in the period.
Almost half of the phony bills identified between January and September — 108,835 or 48.5% of the total — were located in just three federal entities: Mexico City, México state and Jalisco.
Almost one-third of the fake banknotes were found in the capital, while more than 10% were located in México state, which includes many municipalities that are part of the Mexico City metropolitan area. Just over 7% of the billetes falsos showed up in Jalisco.
Baja California Sur and Campeche were the only two states where fewer than 1,000 fake bills were detected in the first nine months of the year.
Based on the January-September data, the Bank of Mexico is on track to identify just over 300,000 fake banknotes this year, a figure which would represent a small increase compared to 2023.
Banxico identified 299,476 counterfeit bills last year, a 17% decline compared to the record-high 360,926 fakes that were found in 2022.
What is Mexico’s most counterfeited banknote?
According to Banxico, the 200-peso note is currently Mexico’s most forged bill.
The most forged bill is the 200 peso note, of which there are two designs in circulation: Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz and Miguel Hidalgo with José María Morelos. (Cuartoscuro)
Data shows that the central bank has identified 50.9 fake 200-peso bills this year for every 1 million in circulation.
The second and third most counterfeited notes this year are the 500 peso and 1,000 peso bills, respectively.
The 200, 500 and 1,000 peso notes are all made out of paper, unlike the 20 and 50 peso bills, and most 100-peso ones, which are made out of polymer.
“When you’re handling Mexican banknotes, be sure to feel the paper; it should feel the same as, for example, US or Canadian dollars, British pounds, or euros,” says Mexperience.
“If the note doesn’t ‘feel’ right — paper used for counterfeit notes is often thicker than genuine banknote paper — check for additional security features,” the article continues.
Paper used for counterfeit notes is often thicker than genuine banknote paper. (Mexico City SSC).
On its website, the Bank of Mexico says it offers “training to identify security features in Mexican banknotes for financial institutions, legal authorities, government institutions, companies, and the general public.”
The training (Spanish only) can be completed in person in Mexico City or online. More information is available here.
What should you do if you think you have a fake bill?
According to Banxico, “if you have a banknote/coin which you believe is not authentic (presumably counterfeit/forged), do not continue using it.”
“Paying with a counterfeit banknote/coin is a federal crime punishable by up to 12 years in prison. You must turn it in to any bank so that they can send it to the Bank of Mexico to be analyzed. The Bank of Mexico is the only institution in Mexico that can determine whether a banknote/coin is authentic or counterfeit,” Banxico says.
“If at the moment of paying you are told that your banknote/coin seems counterfeit/forged, ask them to return it to you so that you can take it to a bank. Only banks can retain presumably counterfeit banknotes/coins and, in exchange, they must give you a receipt,” the central bank says.
“The bank must then send the presumably counterfeit banknote/coin to the Bank of Mexico to be analyzed,” it adds.
Mexican beaches are often overrun with waste from holidaymakers. Here's how you can play your part in keeping Mexico's perfect beaches... perfect. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal/Cuaroscuro)
Our little town of Chacala recently experienced a waste crisis when the trash pickup service stopped for several weeks. The landfill that usually accepts our garbage had caught on fire — the second time this year — and couldn’t take more waste until it was under control. Piles of trash accumulated on every street corner. Rotting food, plastic bags and bottles, styrofoam containers, soiled toilet paper, and other unmentionables were strewn everywhere.
The county government provided no alternate plan for trash removal, leaving the community on its own to figure out a solution. Several Chacaleños rallied to pay for dump trucks to haul trash away, at a cost of tens of thousands of pesos.
Beach towns might seem like a weekend paradise – but spare a thought for what happens after the crowds go home. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
The crisis got me thinking about just how much trash is left behind on Mexico’s beaches, how waste removal is handled (and mishandled), who is responsible, and how we can all do a better job reducing waste, especially tourists.
Tourists often complain about how much litter is on Mexico’s beaches and assume that local Mexicans are primarily responsible. This is not only condescending and harmful cultural stereotyping, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Foreign tourists and out-of-area visitors contribute far more waste than locals, putting extreme pressure on communities to keep beaches clean with little to no government support.
Take Chacala as an example, our resident population is about 500 people. But on any given weekend or holiday, we can see our population quadruple to 2,000 people or more. Mondays are the worst day to walk the beach after everyone has gone and the evidence is left behind – styrofoam plates, plastic cups and bottles, dirty diapers, plastic bags, cigarette butts – you name it. While plenty of people use the trash cans provided, there is simply too much waste for them to hold.
And when the garbage cans are overflowing, it falls on community members and local business owners to organize volunteers to clean up or pay someone to collect it, all at their own time and expense.
Beach cleanups are often run by local communities, at their own expense. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
Instead of complaining about trash, here are some ideas for visitors to help keep beaches clean:
Separate your trash: Much of the waste people generate is recyclable or biodegradable. You can reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills by separating recyclables and food waste from other trash. Many beach towns have receptacles or collection centers for recyclables and organics.
Bring reusable shopping bags: This is already common practice in many parts of the world, but for some reason, when people go on vacation, they seem to forget. When you travel, pack your good habits and a few reusable bags with you. Or buy some bags here. Mexico has one of the longest reusable market bag traditions in the world.
Buy more whole foods: Fill those reusable bags with fresh fruit, vegetables, bread, tortillas, and other goods that can be bought locally and don’t come in plastic packaging.
Bring a plate to taco stands: No one can resist the temptation of a street taco, but you can resist being given a styrofoam plate to eat it on. Next time you have a hankering for a taco, leave no trace and bring your plate (and cloth napkin) with you.
Order drinks that come in returnable bottles: Skip beverages that come in plastic bottles and choose ones that come in returnable glass bottles or are made fresh in large batches like aguas frescas that are served in glass cups or clay mugs.
Bring a to-go container to restaurants: If your eyes are bigger than your stomach and you often have leftovers when eating out, make sure to bring a reusable container to bring leftovers home instead of having the restaurant put them in a styrofoam box.
Patronize businesses that reduce waste: It’s becoming more common in Mexico (and in some cities, it’s the law) to not use disposable plates, bags, and other items at shops and restaurants, and opt for natural and biodegradable products. (We have a local ice cream shop in Chacala that uses coconut husks as bowls!) Seek out and patronize those businesses that are taking action to reduce waste.
Put trash in cans with lids: Leaving trash in bags on the street attracts dogs that scatter it around and leave a mess. Put trash in a can with a lid, and if your hotel or rental doesn’t have one, be a champ and buy one for them.
Collect trash while walking the beach: Since you are likely to walk the beach anyway, why not bring a trash bag with you and pick up some litter along the way?
Donate to local limpieza efforts: The community you are visiting most likely has an environmental committee or limpieza campaign that is working to educate the public and raise money for waste removal, reduction, and recycling efforts. Ask around and find the groups in your community you can support.
This goes without saying, but companies that produce throw-away products are the real culprits of the world’s waste problem, not consumers. We are pressured to make better choices, and that certainly helps, but it’s corporations that need to be responsible for the life cycle of their products. As a society, we must continue to advocate for laws that hold companies accountable for the waste they produce, and as consumers, we must stop supporting companies that contribute to the problem.
President Claudia Sheinbaum met with more than 200 business leaders at the United States-Mexico CEO Dialogue meeting in Mexico City on Tuesday. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
None of the federal government’s recently approved and proposed constitutional reforms will be detrimental to investment in Mexico, President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday after meeting with more than 200 business leaders at the United States-Mexico CEO Dialogue meeting in Mexico City.
In support of that assertion, Sheinbaum and Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard told reporters that companies on Tuesday announced plans to invest more than US $20 billion in Mexico in 2025. However, the bulk of the investments had previously been announced.
Sheinbaum said that there will be ongoing dialogue between the government and the business sector to clear up “any doubts” they have about the policies of her administration. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
At a press conference at the National Palace, Sheinbaum said that the meeting with 240 business leaders was “very good” and asserted that the government addressed the concerns the business sector has about the recently enacted judicial reform as well as a range of reform proposals that have not yet passed Congress, including one aimed at disbanding a number of autonomous government agencies.
She also said that there will be ongoing dialogue between the government and the business sector to clear up “any doubts” they have about the policies of her administration.
“Your investments are safe in Mexico,” Sheinbaum told the CEOs during a speech at the annual meeting.
Referring to the judicial reform, a proposed energy reform currently before Congress and a range of other constitutional bills that former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador put forth in February, the president told the Tuesday afternoon press conference that “none of these reforms represents a problem for investment in Mexico.”
“The opposite is true. The rule of law will be strengthened, the national electricity system will be strengthened,” Sheinbaum said.
Investors are particularly concerned about the plan to allow citizens to elect all of Mexico’s judges, including Supreme Court justices. Many investors — and others — fear that judges sympathetic to the ruling Morena party’s legislative agenda could come to dominate the nation’s courts, effectively removing an important check on government power and possibly posing a threat to their investments.
The energy reform proposals seek to enshrine in the constitution a majority share (54%) of the electricity generation market for the Mexican state, a move that could dissuade private investment in the sector.
Ebrard touts ‘the investment announcements made today’
Early in the post-CEO Dialogue press conference, Ebrard said that “the investment announcements made today in the presence of President Claudia Sheinbaum” exceed $20 billion.
In his speech, Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard referred to several investment announcements for 2025 that are neither new nor completely certain. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
The economy minister referred to four investment announcements for 2025.
The Associated Press reported that “much” of the investment announced (or reaffirmed) on Tuesday “was neither new, nor completely certain.”
For example, Mexico Pacific’s plan to build an LNG plant and export terminal on the Gulf of California in Puerto Libertad, Sonora, “has been on the drawing boards since at least 2020, and still depends on getting cross-border gas pipelines approved and built,” AP said.
The company’s CEO, Sarah Bairstow, co-chaired the U.S.-Mexico CEO Dialogue on Tuesday and spoke at Sheinbaum’s press conference at the National Palace.
“We’ve had a wonderfully constructive dialogue here today, very important to the bilateral relationship between the U.S. and Mexico. It’s been fantastic hearing the vision directly from the presidenta herself around investment in the country and the support for these critically needed assets,” she said.
“At Mexico Pacific, we’re proud to be developing the Saguaro Energía LNG facility and accompanying gas pipeline. This represents the largest foreign direct investment into Mexico to date and we’ve certainly reaffirmed our investment on the back of the conditions we see here for investment in Mexico,” Bairstow said.
Ebrard said that Sheinbaum conveyed messages of “certainty” to investors at Tuesday’s meeting, and declared himself that “investments in Mexico are safe.”
During a press conference following the CEO Dialogue, Sheinbaum shared that her government is creating an Agency for Digital Transformation and Telecommunications, which aims to expedite investment in Mexico. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
Sheinbaum: Investment approvals to be expedited
Sheinbaum told the CEO dialogue attendees that “starting in January next year, we’re going to create the Agency for Digital Transformation and Telecommunications.”
“In a single institution we’re going to concentrate everything related to the simplification and digitalization of bureaucratic procedures,” she said.
“This will allow an investment to become reality in months, instead of two or three years.”
At the press conference, Sheinbaum said that a bill allowing the creation of the new agency will be presented to Congress “very soon.”
“… One of the reasons why national and foreign investors avoid investing in Mexico is because of the delay in [completing] bureaucratic procedures,” she said.
“… If we facilitate this, it’s an enormous incentive [for investors],” she said.
Sheinbaum also told reporters that the government outlined its “investment strategy” to the U.S. and Mexican business leaders present at the meeting.
“[It includes] investment in housing, investment in trains, investment in highways, investment in ports, … investment in infrastructure in general,” she said.
“… Essentially that was the dialogue. The majority of [business] chambers were present, as well as Mexican business people … and [there was] a very important representation of United States companies,” she said.
Asked about the 2026 review — or even renegotiation — of the USMCA, Sheinbaum said she hoped to largely keep the North American free trade pact as is.
“We have the idea of maintaining the agreement with few modifications,” she said.
Francisco Cervantes, president of Mexico’s influential Business Coordinating Council, told the same press conference that Sheinbaum had made it clear that she is very supportive of investment in Mexico.
“In the voice of the president, the line of action moving forward in Mexico was ratified, and it is [promoting and supporting] investment,” he said.
In the first six months of 2024, foreign direct investment exceeded US $31 billion, a new record for Mexico. The government hopes that even more impressive numbers can be recorded in the near future as companies act on their investment announcements and other foreign firms are attracted to the country amid the ongoing nearshoring trend.
Genaro García Luna was sentenced to 460 months in US federal prison. Prosecutors had asked for a life sentence. (File photo/Moisés Pablo Nava for Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s former security minister Genaro García Luna was sentenced to just over 38 years in prison on Wednesday, almost 20 months after he was convicted of colluding with the Sinaloa Cartel.
At a hearing in U.S. federal court in Brooklyn, New York, District Judge Brian M. Cogan sentenced García Luna to 460 months’ imprisonment and a US $2 million fine “for his decade-long assistance to the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes,” according to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office.
Garcia Luna, left, was Mexico’s security minister under President Felipe Calderón, center, (2006–2012). (Octavio Hoyos/Shutterstock)
“Following a four-week trial in February 2023, Garcia Luna was convicted by a jury of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, international cocaine distribution conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to import cocaine and making false statements,” the statement said.
García Luna served as security minister in the 2006–2012 government led by former president Felipe Calderón. Before taking up that position he was director of the now-defunct Federal Investigation Agency.
Calderón has denied having any knowledge of García Luna’s illicit dealings.
United States Attorney Breon Peace said that the sentencing of the 56-year-old — the highest-ranking Mexican official to have ever faced justice in the U.S. — “is a critical step in upholding justice and the rule of law.”
“His betrayal of the public trust and the people he was sworn to protect resulted in more than one million kilograms of lethal narcotics imported into our communities and unleashed untold violence here and in Mexico,” he said.
Así se vio afuera del Tribunal Federal Este de Brooklyn, donde determinaron la sentencia de García Luna. pic.twitter.com/J7HszXsKlx
Garcia Luna’s case attracted protests and the curious outside the Brooklyn federal courthouse where his trial occurred.
“This sentence sends a strong message that no one, regardless of their position or influence, is above the law.”
Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) chief Anne Milgram said that the sentencing “sends a clear message to corrupt leaders around the world who use their positions of power to help the cartels.”
The message? “No amount of power will shield you from justice.”
“… Instead of protecting the citizens of Mexico, Garcia Luna was protecting drug cartels. The DEA will continue to relentlessly pursue drug trafficking organizations and those who protect them,” Milgram added.
While serving as security minister, the now convicted and sentenced criminal was a “close partner” of the DEA, “which gave him multiple awards over the years to honor his work fighting crime,” The Los Angeles Times reported.
“At the same time he was receiving DEA accolades, however, he was also leaking secrets to the Sinaloa cartel,” the Times added.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office statement said that “Garcia Luna’s conduct included facilitating safe passage of the [Sinaloa] Cartel’s drug shipments, providing sensitive law enforcement information about investigations into the Cartel and helping the Cartel attack rival drug cartels, thereby facilitating the importation of multi‑ton quantities of cocaine and other drugs into the United States.”
“In exchange for bribes, the defendant’s Federal Police Force acted as bodyguards and escorts for the Cartel, allowing Cartel members to wear police uniforms and badges and helping to unload shipments of cocaine from planes at Mexico City’s airport, then delivering the cocaine to the Cartel. The defendant was paid in U.S. currency, stuffed variously in suitcases, briefcases and duffel bags,” it said.
The statement also said that after he moved to the United States in 2012, García Luna applied for U.S. citizenship in 2018, and on his application “lied about his past criminal conduct on behalf of the Cartel in an attempt to become a U.S. citizen.”
García Luna’s wife and daughter were in the court when Cogan read out the 460-month sentence.
Former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador and his Morena party have frequently used the García Luna case for political currency against the National Action Party (PAN), the party of former president Felipe Calderón, suggesting that Calderón and his party was also corrupt. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
He acknowledged García Luna’s work teaching fellow prisoners at the Metropolitan Detention Center but also said that the former federal official lived a “double life,” and the harm he caused outweighed his good deeds.
“Aside from your very pleasant demeanor and your articulateness, you have the same kind of thuggishness as El Chapo, it just manifests itself differently,” Cogan said, referring to convicted drug lord Joaquín Guzmán Loera.
Before his sentence was handed down, García Luna accused the Mexican government and criminals of making false allegations against him.
“I have not committed any of these crimes,” he said. “I am not the person that the criminals point to.”
López Obrador’s predecessor, Enrique Peña Nieto, denied an allegation made at El Chapo’s 2019 trial that he received a $100 million bribe from the Sinaloa Cartel.
Governor of Nuevo León Samuel García created the state’s first-ever Tourism Ministry to boost the industry in 2021.
(Shutterstock)
Tourism in the northern state of Nuevo León has gone from 4.3 million visitors in 2021 to 15 million in 2024, according to the Nuevo León Tourism Minister Mari Carmen Martínez Villarreal. These figures represent a nearly 250% increase in just three years.
“We have worked tirelessly for the past three years to position Nuevo León in the world through strategic actions and the implementation of key projects,” Martínez said at a press conference on Tuesday. “Our vision has been clear: to turn the state of Nuevo León into a benchmark for national and international tourism.”
Nuevo León is an industrial state that previously put very little emphasis on tourism. Governor of Nuevo León Samuel García created the state’s first-ever Tourism Ministry to boost the industry in 2021.
Since its creation, the tourism office has worked toward promoting the state’s parks, Pueblos Mágicos (Magical Towns) and culinary heritage. Last year, the state government recognized carneasada, cabrito and machaca (beef dishes) as intangible cultural heritage of Nuevo León.
Pasaporte Nuevo León: The new app for NL tourists
During her speech, Martínez highlighted that under the current administration, the state has forged strategic alliances with the digital platforms Airbnb and Didi, to offer travelers better mobility and accommodation deals in the region. Her ministry also created the app “Pasaporte Nuevo León” (Passport Nuevo León) to help travelers discover experiences and tourist destinations within the state.
Other initiatives include positioning Nuevo León as a strategic international travel hub, connecting it with Latin America through flights from Monterrey to Bogotá, with Asia through Tokyo and Seoul and with Europe through Madrid.
View of Cerro de la Bufa, one of the icons of Monterrey, capital of the northern state of Nuevo León. (Yoplita/Wikimedia Commons)
“Throughout Nuevo León, we are promoting tourism that respects the environment, promotes economic development and puts our state on the global map of destinations of excellence,” Martínez said.
Finally, Martínez noted that events such as congresses, conventions and exhibitions held in Nuevo León have seen exponential growth in the last three years, going from 57 in 2021, to 117 in 2022, 150 in 2023 and just over 160 in 2024.
“The 2022-2027 state development plan focuses on consolidating tourism as one of the main drivers of economic growth for Nuevo León,” Martínez stressed.
Nuevo León expects 500,000 for FIFA World Cup 2026
Martínez said Nuevo León is ready to welcome tourists who visit the state for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, under the slogan, “We are ready.” The state expects over half a million visitors to the tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
To “get ready,” the state will provide English lessons to workers in the tourism industry, including waiters, taxi drivers and first-contact personnel. In addition, the state is working to improve coordination with airlines, create green pedestrian corridors, build new shopping malls and hotels and expand the Monterrey International Airport.
Martínez said they forecast full hotel occupancy during the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
Mexico beat the US 2-0 in a Concacaf friendly match held in Guadalajara on Tuesday. (Fernando Carranza García/Cuartoscuro)
Raúl Jiménez recorded a goal and added an assist to lead Mexico to a 2-0 win over the United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) in an international soccer friendly at Guadalajara’s Estadio Akron on Tuesday night.
The victory was Mexico’s first over Team USA in more than five years and ended a seven-match unbeaten streak (5-2-0) for the Americans.
Raúl Jiménez with a perfect free kick to give Mexico the 1-0 lead 🎯
Jiménez, a Fulham forward, fired home a free kick from 24 meters to put El Tri, as Mexico’s men’s team is known, ahead in minute 22. It was the 34th goal in a national team jersey for the 33-year-old forward, lifting him into fifth place on Mexico’s all-time scoring list.
Playing with the advantage, Mexico pressured the U.S. team in midfield, surrounding lone forward Josh Sargent and keeping Mauricio Pochettino’s men from generating any threats.
Less than four minutes into the second half, El Tri struck again with Jiménez playing a key role.
Stuck near the sideline in his own end, midfielder Luis Romo found Orbelín Pineda on the other side of midfield with a lovely ball. Pineda trapped the pass, spun and quickly volleyed a diagonal lead pass to Jiménez flashing free down the right channel.
Long-time captain Andrés Guardado said goodbye to the Mexican National Team during Tuesday’s match against the United States. (Fernando Carranza García/Cuartoscuro)
The former América star dribbled into the box, skidding to a halt as defender Tim Ream challenged him and tugged him off the ball. Jiménez recovered, chased Ream and executed a neat sliding scissors tackle, sending the ball to teammate César Huerta near the penalty spot. Huerta coolly sidestepped Miles Robinson and slotted home past sprawling U.S. keeper Matt Turner to make it 2-0.
The two-goal deficit failed to spark a reaction from a beleaguered Team USA playing without seven starters. The Americans didn’t get their first shot on goal until minute 79 and their first shot of any kind — a muffed volley attempt by left-back Kristoffer Lund — came only 15 minutes earlier.
The game served as a tribute match for long-time captain Andrés Guardado who announced his retirement from El Tri. Guardado, 38, started and played 19 minutes before coming off to a standing ovation from the 43,537 fans in attendance, getting hugs from teammates and handshakes from some U.S. players.
Being a friendly match, however, the loss does little to alter Team USA’s claim to being the top club in the Concacaf region.
Players from both sides now return to club duty for four weeks before the next international window during which time the games will be for real.
Mexico will face Honduras twice (once at home and once on the road) in a Concacaf Nations League quarterfinal series, while the U.S. team is matched up against Jamaica in the same tournament.
The game served as a tribute match for long-time captain Andrés Guardado who announced his retirement from El Tri. Guardado, 38, started and played 19 minutes before coming off to a standing ovation from the 43,537 fans in attendance, getting hugs from teammates and handshakes from some U.S. players.
The peso has depreciated by more than 18% since its strongest position this year. (Marco Antonio Casique/Unsplash)
The Mexican peso continued to depreciate against the US dollar on Wednesday morning, losing ground for a third consecutive day to reach an exchange rate of almost 20 pesos to the greenback.
At 5 p.m. Mexico City time, one dollar was trading at 19.91 pesos, according to Bloomberg.
One factor affecting the peso’s strength is repeated threats by presidential candidate Donald Trump, who has said he he would place extremely high tariffs on Chinese vehicles made in Mexico. (X)
The peso closed at 19.69 to the dollar on Tuesday, according to the Bank of Mexico.
He even cited a figure of 2,000%, although in subsequent remarks he only went as high as 300%.
“I’m going to put the highest tariff in history, meaning I’m going to stop them from ever selling a car into the United States,” said the Republican Party presidential candidate, who also asserted that “the most beautiful word in the dictionary is tariff.”
“… China is building massive auto plants in Mexico. And they’re going to build them, and they’re going to take those cars and sell them into the United States,” he said.
The peso’s strongest position in 2024 was in April, when it reached 16.30 pesos to the US dollar, at a time when the consumer price index was also showing downward movement. (Wikimedia Commons)
Foreign exchange news website FX Street reported that the peso “depreciated over 1.60% against the US dollar on Tuesday after Donald Trump threatened to whack prohibitory tariffs on Mexican-made autos entering the US market.”
FX Street reported that the peso also “depreciated in early trading on Wednesday as the US dollar strengthened amid a mixed market mood with falling U.S. Treasury yields.”
The peso has depreciated significantly since the comprehensive victory of President Claudia Sheinbaum and the ruling Morena party at Mexico’s June 2 elections.
National Guardsman on patrol. Both the National Guard and the Mexican army were implicated in civilian killings this past weekend in Nuevo Laredo. (Omar Martínez/Cuartoscuro)
President Claudia Sheinbaum addressed questions Tuesday about accusations that military soldiers and National Guard members were involved in the shooting deaths of three civilians over the weekend — including a nurse and a child — in two incidents in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas.
According to media reports, all the victims died in the crossfire of two different shootouts in Nuevo Laredo between patrols and suspected members of criminal groups.
President Sheinbaum confirmed the three deaths in Nuevo Laredo but gave few details, saying that the federal Attorney General’s office had already begun investigating. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)
At her Tuesday morning press conference, Sheinbaum confirmed the three civilian deaths, adding that a member of the military was also killed in the incident on Friday in which a nurse was killed.
The other incident, on Saturday, involved the National Guard, Sheinbaum confirmed, and resulted in the deaths of two civilians, one of whom was a young girl. Both cases were under investigation by the federal Attorney General’s Office, she said.
She did not give any details about the third civilian victim.
Nuevo Laredo, a border city with Laredo, Texas, has been the site in multiple incidents involving civilians killed in encounters with military forces serving as law enforcement. The military and the National Guard are both under the supervision of the Defense Ministry.
In the Friday incident, a family found itself on a road where the military was pursuing suspects’ vehicles in a car chase after having been fired upon, Sheinbaum said.
Víctor Carrillo Martínez told local media that his wife, Yuricie Rivera Elizalde, was killed in the crossfire by a bullet to the head. According to reports, Martínez said medical personnel who attended to Rivera, a nurse, told him, “They were large-caliber bullets used by soldiers.”
Yuricie Rivera Elizalde, a nurse in Nuevo Laredo, was killed in her family’s car on Friday when it ended up in the middle of a shootout between a Mexican army vehicle and one driven by suspected cartel members. (X)
Carillo also told reporters that the soldiers involved in the incident did not stop to help and simply drove on.
In the Saturday incident, Lidia Galván Reséndezan and her 8-year-old granddaughter were driving to a stationery store when they were caught in the middle of a car chase between National Guard officers and a suspect. The 8-year-old, identified by the Expansión media outlet as Lidia Iris, was shot in the head and died soon after arriving at a hospital.
Galván told reporters that her car got trapped between a military vehicle and an SUV when authorities opened fire.
The Nuevo Laredo Human Rights Committee (CDHNL), a local NGO, released a statement on Sunday, saying that another civilian had been killed during another car chase in the city involving the military. Sheinbaum did not confirm a third incident, so it isn’t clear if the death referred to by the human rights group was the other death she acknowledged had happened in the Saturday incident with the National Guard.
A history of violence
Nuevo Laredo has suffered repeated violence over the last several years under the presence of the Northeast Cartel, an offshoot of another criminal group, Los Zetas. The government has responded to the violence with regular military and National Guard patrols.
President Sheinbaum emphasized at her Tuesday press conference that “it is very important to say that Nuevo Laredo is where criminal groups have carried out the most attacks on the army and the National Guard.”
She also said that if any members of the Guard or army were found to have acted badly, they would face consequences.
The Defense Ministry (Sedena) has yet to comment on the incidents.
The military and the Guard have been implicated in multiple civilian killings in Nuevo Laredo. In 2023, 16 Guardsmen were accused of killing five disarmed suspects (caught on video), and a military patrol killed two civilians driving home from a social event. (Screen capture/File photo)
Multiple accusations of wrongdoing
The military has been implicated in previous killings of civilians, most recently at the beginning of October, six migrants were killed in the southern state of Chiapas, after the Mexican army opened fire on vehicles that were attempting to evade military personnel carrying out patrols.
Sedena released a statement afterward saying that the soldiers claimed they’d heard shots and opened fire on a truck that turned out to be carrying migrants from Egypt, Nepal, Cuba, India, Pakistan and El Salvador. Four of the migrants were found dead and 12 wounded.
The military and the Guard also have a controversial history, particularly in Nuevo Laredo, where in 2023, a Guard patrol in Nuevo Laredo allegedly killed two civilians in a car for no apparent reason. At the time, CDHNL president Raymundo Ramos claimed that a Guard artilleryman shot at the vehicle 86 times. Also last year, 16 army soldiers were caught on video in Nuevo Laredo shooting five disarmed suspects execution-style.
Created in 2019 to replace Mexico’s discredited civilian Federal Police, the National Guard’s existence has been intertwined with the military from early on, but as of September, it officially came under military control. (National Guard/Facebook)
The National Guard: blurring lines between civilian and military
Shortly before leaving office, former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and his Morena Party succeeded in pushing through a new constitutional reform that put the Guard permanently under Sedena’s control, further blurring the lines between the civilian and military forces in Mexico, as the Guard is Mexico’s federal police force.
Since its creation, the Guard has been used in every state in Mexico to patrol civilian public spaces, including airports and federal highways, but also more local spaces such as bus stations. They also assist state and local law enforcement in responding to more serious crimes, usually involving illicit drug trafficking, people smuggling and fuel theft.
The constitutional reform was widely criticized by those who say it violates Mexico’s constitution and that the military is not adequately trained to do civilian law enforcement.
