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Annual inflation rate climbs to 4.02% in February, with fruit and vegetable prices soaring

By
MND Staff
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Prices for some seafood products are up between 10 and 40% this year.
Prices for some seafood products are up between 10 and 40% this year. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)

Mexico’s annual headline inflation rate rose above 4% in February, exceeding the Bank of Mexico’s 2-4% target range.

The national statistics agency INEGI reported Monday that the annual headline rate was 4.02% last month, up from 3.79% in January.

The rate — the highest since last June — exceeded the 3.94% consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

INEGI reported that month-over-month inflation was 0.50% in February, while the annual core rate, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was 4.50%, down from 4.52% in January.

The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) targets 3% annual inflation, give or take one percentage point.

At its Feb. 5 monetary policy meeting, the central bank’s board voted to maintain Banxico’s benchmark interest rate at 7%. The bank said in a statement that the board took into account “the need to continue evaluating the impact of the fiscal adjustments implemented at the beginning of the year, as well as the behavior of the exchange rate, the weakness of economic activity, and the level of monetary restriction [already] implemented.”

Between August 2024 and December 2025, Banxico lowered its benchmark interest rate after 12 consecutive monetary policy meetings. The bank’s interest rate declined from 11% to 7% in the period.

The Banxico board’s next monetary policy meeting will be held on March 26.

On social media on Monday morning, Banco Base’s director of economic analysis, Gabriela Siller, wrote that cutting the interest rate now would be a “serious monetary policy mistake.”

“Inflation is back above 4% and there are many risks that it will continue to rise,” she wrote.

The Bank of Mexico building in Mexico City
The uptick in inflation may lead the Bank of Mexico to keep interest rates where they are after this month’s monetary policy meeting. (Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 3.0)

She cited inflationary pressures on energy due to the war in the Middle East and on goods “due to the 2026 economic package” as new risks.

For his part, Marco Oviedo, a senior strategist at investment firm XP Investimentos, believes that Banxico could cut its benchmark interest rate after this month’s monetary policy meeting.

“Core inflation came in line with expectations, confirming no evidence [of an impact on inflation] from Asian tariffs at this stage,” he wrote in a note to clients.

“This would be sufficient for the board to start discussing a potential cut in the March meeting, as recent market volatility should be perceived as transitory,” Oviedo said.

Banxico governor Victoria Rodríguez said last month that tariffs on products from China and other countries with which Mexico doesn’t have free trade agreements hadn’t affected prices. Those tariffs — as high as 50% on some goods — took effect on Jan. 1.

Rodríguez also said that recent tax increases on products including soft drinks and cigarettes haven’t had a significant impact on inflation.

Fruit and veg prices up almost 10% annually 

INEGI reported that prices for fruit and vegetables were 9.88% higher in February than a year earlier. That increase was the highest of any category monitored by INEGI.

Agricultural products more broadly were 4.50% more expensive in February than the same month of 2025. The increase was tempered by annual inflation of just 0.98% for meat.

INEGI reported that annual inflation for processed food, beverages and tobacco was 6.20% in February, while non-food goods were 3.13% more expensive than a year earlier. Year-over-year inflation for services was 4.45%, while energy prices, including those for electricity and gasoline, rose 0.89% annually.

Month-over-month price changes 

INEGI reported that limes — an extremely popular product in Mexico — were 25.97% more expensive in February than in January. Month-over-month inflation for limes was also above 20% in January.

Tomato prices increased 22.51% in February compared to January, while potatoes and other root vegetables were 20.86% more expensive.

Not only is it usually spicier than salsa roja, but salsa verde currently costs nearly 20% more to make. 
(Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)

Green tomatoes were 18.89% more expensive in February than in January, while banana prices rose 10.79%. Smokers paid 2.27% more for cigarettes in February.

Siller said that month-over-month inflation for fruit and vegetables collectively, at 4.94%, was the largest increase for any February since 1992.

INEGI also reported that prices for some products fell in February compared to the previous month. Onions were 8.40% cheaper last month than in January, while prices for serrano peppers and zucchinis fell 6.76% and 4.70%, respectively.

Among the other products whose prices fell in February were eggs (-2.63%); LP gas (-1.83%); beans (-1.81%); deodorant (-1.41%); pork (-1.38%); and chicken (-1.29%).

Among Mexico’s 32 federal entities, Veracruz recorded the highest month-over-month inflation rate in February (0.80%), while Tamaulipas recorded the lowest (0.12%), INEGI said.

With reports from El Economista, Bloomberg and Milenio

Mexico mourns Pedro Friedeberg, a major figure in contemporary art

By
MND Staff
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Pedro Friedeberg
Pedro Friedeberg was brought at age three from Europe to Mexico where he met — and later succeeded — such renowned Mexican-based surrealists as Remedios Varo, Leonora Carrington and Edward James. He died last week at age 90 in San Miguel de Allende. (Gobierno de México)

Surrealist artist Pedro Friedeberg, considered one of the most prolific and eccentric artists to come out of Mexico, died at his home in San Miguel de Allende on March 5. He was 90 years old.

“Pedro died surrounded by his family, with much love and in peace,” his children said in a statement. “His family feels deeply grateful to have been able to share all this time with him. His work and his creative spirit leave an immense legacy.” 

Pedro Friedeberg 2014
Pedro Friedeberg, shown here at the inauguration of his 2014 exhibition “Muestra Manos por México” (Show Your Hands for Mexico), died peacefully on Thursday in his San Miguel Allende home, surrounded by family. (Rogelio Morales/Cuartoscuro)

Friedeberg is survived by two children, Diana and David Friedeberg, as well as his wife, Carmen Gutiérrez.

Friedeberg’s work is recognizable for its ornamental exuberance and irony, often featuring symbolic references to religion, Mesoamerican codices and esoteric traditions, characteristics that earned him status as a cult figure within modern and contemporary Mexican art.

His artistic output spans more than six decades, encompassing painting, sculpture, furniture design and imaginary architectural projects. 

He once explained his artistic approach by saying, “If only I could spread out everything that stirs within me with such heat, with such exuberance of life, onto paper, turning it into a mirror of my soul.”

Though commonly labeled a Surrealist, Friedeberg bristled at being associated with that movement.

The National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature lamented Friedeberg’s passing, saying in a statement that “the Mexican art world lost … a fundamental figure of contemporary art.”

His passing “marks the loss of one of the most eccentric and recognizable creators in Mexico’s art scene,” wrote the newspaper El Economista.

Born in Florence, Italy, in 1936 to German-Jewish parents, Friedeberg arrived in Mexico with his family at the age of three. He attended college in Boston briefly before returning in 1957 to study architecture at Mexico City’s Ibero-American University.

There, one of his professors, Mathias Goeritz, convinced him to become an artist. Friedeberg worked summers as an assistant to Goeritz, a renowned artist and poet, during which time he met surrealists including Remedios Varo, Leonora Carrington and Edward James.

His first exhibition came about in 1959 at the Diana Gallery in Mexico after Varo recommended his work to the owners, and from there, his work expanded internationally.

In the early 1960s, Friedeberg, along with Goeritz, co-founded “Los Hartos,” a group that included José Luis Cuevas, Chucho Reyes, Ida Rodríguez Prampolini and Alice Rahon. Los Hartos reacted against functionalist rationalism in art, claiming to defend a more imaginative and iconoclastic aesthetic, as well as the hierarchization of art from individualism.

Friedeberg’s art can be found throughout Mexico, with notable works in Mexico City, including the mural “Sixteen Riddles of a Hindu Astronaut” (in the Camino Real hotel in Polanco), the sculpture “The Lighthouse of Silence” (in the Maia Contemporary art gallery) and the “Listening in the Metro” mural (in the Bellas Artes subway station).

Among his most notable works is the 1962 creation “The Hand of Akhenaten,” known familiarly as “The Hand-Chair.”

Friedeberg also submitted 34 of his works to the Finance Ministry over the years as “payment in kind,” saying in 2014 that it “would help immortalize my work.”

With reports from El Economista, EFE and Art News

Why isn’t Mexico part of Trump’s new ‘Shield of the Americas’?

By
MND Staff
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Established last Thursday during the Americas Counter Cartel Conference in Miami, the "Shield" includes the leaders of the United States, Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, Paraguay and Peru.
Established last Thursday during the Americas Counter Cartel Conference in Miami, the "Shield" includes the leaders of the United States, Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, Paraguay and Peru. (@WhiteHouse/X)

The United States has established a new “counter cartel coalition” made up of Western Hemisphere nations, but Mexico isn’t part of the group even though U.S. President Donald Trump asserted on Saturday that the country is the “epicenter of cartel violence.”

The Americas Counter Cartel Coalition (ACCC) — also known as the “Shield of the Americas” — was established last Thursday during the Americas Counter Cartel Conference in Miami. Among the coalition partners are the United States, Argentina, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama, Paraguay and Peru. In addition to Mexico, countries including Colombia, Brazil, Canada and Cuba are not part of the coalition.

At an event on Saturday that the White House called the “Shield of the Americas” summit, Trump signed a proclamation that states that U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth “established the Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, a pledge from military leaders and representatives from 17 countries demonstrating that the region is ready to operationalize hard power to defeat these threats to our security and civilization.”

At the summit, held in Doral, Florida, the U.S. president said that the aim of the coalition is to “eradicate the criminal cartels plaguing our region.”

“And you have a lot of it,” Trump told regional leaders, including President Javier Milei of Argentina, President Daniel Noboa of Ecuador and President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador.

He said that the United States is currently “knocking the hell out of [cartels] where we can, and we’re going to go heavier.”

Trump said that the “heart” of the agreement between the ACCC partners is “a commitment to using lethal military force to destroy the sinister cartels and terrorist networks.”

During his address, he also said that “as part of our commitment to countering the cartel presence in our region, we must recognize the epicenter of cartel violence is Mexico.”

“The Mexican cartels are fueling and orchestrating much of the bloodshed and chaos in this hemisphere and the United States government will do whatever is necessary to defend our national security and to protect the safety of the American people,” said Trump, who in January asserted that the U.S. was going to start “hitting” Mexican cartels on land.

“… It’s coming through Mexico,” he said, referring to narcotics smuggled into the United States.

“And I like the president very much,” Trump said, referring to Claudia Sheinbaum, who on Jan. 12 appeared to defuse the U.S. president’s threat to launch strikes on Mexican cartels, at least temporarily.

“She’s a very good person. She’s got a beautiful voice, a beautiful woman, but beautiful voice,” he said before attempting to imitate it.

“… I said, ‘Let me eradicate the cartels.’ [She said:] “No, no, no, please, president.’ We have to eradicate them. We have to knock the hell out of them because they’re getting worse. They’re taking over their country. The cartels are running Mexico. We can’t have that. Too close to us. Too close to you,” Trump said, alluding to his stated willingness to use the U.S. military to attack Mexican cartels.

The U.S. president announced last Thursday that Kristi Noem, the former secretary of homeland security, would be “Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere,” a region that the U.S. government has declared a strategic priority as part of the so-called “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine.

Why isn’t Mexico part of the ACCC?

There appears to be a range of reasons why Mexico is not part of the ACCC, including that it has a separate bilateral security agreement or “understanding” with the U.S., the Mexican government is not ideologically aligned with the Trump administration and Sheinbaum is vehemently opposed to any kind of U.S. military action in Mexican territory.

Mexico was reportedly not invited to either the “Shield of the Americas” summit or the Americas Counter Cartel Conference. However, a U.S. Department of State spokesperson told the EFE news agency that the door is not closed to Mexico joining the ACCC at some point in the future.

Raquel Saed, an academic in the International Studies department of the Ibero-American University in Mexico City, told the newspaper Milenio that Mexico will have “different treatment” in its security relationship with the United States in comparison with the ACCC countries.

She noted that Mexico and the United States have their own intense bilateral agenda.

“We have to share a lot of things [including] a border,” Saed said, noting also that Mexico and the U.S. have their own bilateral social, political and economic relationship.

Eunice Rendón, a security and migration expert, asserted that countries such as Mexico and Brazil were excluded from the “Shield of the Americas” summit because their governments don’t align ideologically with the Trump administration.

The leaders who were invited are more aligned with “the thinking and vision” of Trump, Rendón told Milenio. Some of those leaders “are also part of that fascist, xenophobic, right-wing movement,” she said.

Reuters reported that “many of the leaders” who attended the summit in Florida on Saturday “share Trump’s hardline view of crime and migration, favoring crackdowns over deeper social fixes and private business over the state.”

Embed from Getty Images

Christopher Sabtani, senior research fellow for Latin America at the British think tank Chatham House, wrote that the attendees at the “Shield of the Americas” summit were all “centre- to hard-right leaders,” while the presidents of Brazil, Mexico and Colombia — “all of them of the left” — were “pointedly absent.”

“This is significant: those three countries represent more than half of the region’s GDP. And they host a large part of the region’s illicit markets including narcotics production and trade – the supposed targets of the summit,” Sabatini wrote.

A coalition whose central stated commitment is to use “lethal military force” against cartels is not congruent with Sheinbaum’s condemnation of U.S. attacks targeting alleged drug boats. She has advocated arresting suspected drug traffickers at sea, rather than killing them, and at her Monday morning press conference, said it was “good” that Trump on Saturday had publicly acknowledged her rejection of his offer to send the U.S. army into Mexico to combat Mexican cartels, six of which have been designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.

Sheinbaum is adamant that Mexico can — and must — act on its own against cartels in its own territory, while limiting security collaboration with the United States to things such as intelligence sharing. In contrast, Ecuador — now a ACCC partner — collaborated with the United States on “lethal kinetic operations against Designated Terrorist Organizations within Ecuador” last Friday, according to the U.S. Southern Command. The U.S. could conceivably seek to carry out similar operations with other ACCC partners.

Indeed, during his address on Saturday, Trump told leaders of the ACCC countries that “we’re working with you to do whatever we have to do.”

“We’ll use missiles, [if] you want us to use a missile, they’re extremely accurate. Pew! Right into the living room,” he said, mimicking the sound of a missile.

“That’s the end of that cartel person. But we’ll do whatever you need if you want. A lot of countries don’t want to do that,” Trump said.

Hegseth said at last week’s Counter Cartel Conference that the U.S. “is prepared to take on these threats and go on the offense alone if necessary.”

“However, it is our preference … [that] we all do it together with you,” he said.

While Sheinbaum is steadfastly opposed to a U.S. military attack against cartels in Mexico, and to joint operations with the U.S. on Mexican soil, her government — under pressure from Trump — has taken a more proactive and aggressive approach to combating criminal organizations, as demonstrated by the recent military operation targeting Nemesio Rubén “El Mencho” Oseguera, the now deceased leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

With reports from Reuters, DW and Milenio

When CDMX turns purple: Get the best views of the capital’s jacaranda spring super-bloom at these key spots

By
Andrea Fischer
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Follow the lilac road! Here’s Mexico News Daily’s digest of the key spots in Mexico City to enjoy the jacaranda super bloom. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)

As happens every spring, Mexico City is turning a delightful purple, as the capital’s jacaranda trees reach their peak bloom. 

The first shoots appeared in the last weeks of February, and the trees’ branches, now laden with purple flowers, can be seen until well into April — sometimes even into early May. 

Although you can catch a glimpse of this spring phenomenon from practically anywhere in town, Mexico City has some insider spots that you simply cannot miss this year. Here’s Mexico News Daily’s digest of the key spots to enjoy the 2026 jacaranda season in Mexico City.

Who brought jacarandas to Mexico?

Tatsugoro Matsumoto watering plants
Japanese gardener to the royal family Sashiro Matsumoto was responsible for introducing one of Mexico City’s defining symbols — the jacaranda tree. He also spent much of his time in early 20th-century Mexico creating stunning gardens across the country. (Matsumoto family)

Jacaranda trees are not native to Mexico, but to South America. Jacaranda mimosifolia likely first arrived in Mexico toward the end of the 19th century through trade between the two countries. However, it wasn’t until after the Mexican Revolution at the turn of the 20th century that the tree became fashionable. And that change can be pretty much attributed to one man, who wasn’t native to Mexico either.

In the 1920s, landscape architect and former Japanese royal gardener Sashiro Matsumoto — who had first been brought to Mexico years before by Mexican businessman José de Landero to create a Japanese garden at his hacienda in Huasca de Ocampo, Hidalgo — caught the eye of then Mexican president Álvaro Obregón.

The master gardener had already distinguished himself to the Mexican government in the position of gardener to Mexico City’s Chapultepec Castle during the rehabilitation and reforestation of Chapultepec Forest. Obregón asked Matsumoto and his team to decorate the main avenues of the capital.

Then, a decade later, president Pascual Ortiz Rubio asked Matsumoto to plant Japanese cherry trees on Mexico City’s streets, after having seen them on a visit to Washington, D.C. Matsumoto warned him that due to Mexico’s warmer climate, the trees wouldn’t bloom. Instead, he proposed the jacaranda. Ever since, jacaranda season in Mexico City spans from late February to early May.

Key places to enjoy the jacaranda super bloom 

So, where are the key points to enjoy Matsumoto’s purple legacy? Read on to find out where to watch the jacaranda superbloom this year.

Cafetería Finca Don Porfirio 

Aerial view of the Palacio Bellas Artes in Mexico City with the skyline of the city in the background
This is exactly the view from Finca Don Porfirio Cafeteria’s wonderful terrace — now picture the Palacio de Bellas Artes with jacarandas in full bloom. (Carlos Sánchez/Pexels)(Mikhail Nilov/Pexels)

 This Mexican cafe is just in front of Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City’s Historic Center. Look for the La Nacional Building (a.k.a the Sears Building), famously designed by architect Manuel Ortiz Monasterio, and go up to the eighth floor. The elevator takes you directly to the coffee shop, which also has a truly fantastic chocolate cake.

Do not hesitate to visit the coffee shop’s terrace, where you’ll find one of the most wonderful views of Bellas Artes and of Alameda Central. If you look to the left, the birds-eye view of the jacaranda trees in bloom will take your breath away.

Where: Av. Juárez 14, Centro, Cuauhtémoc

Hemiciclo a Juárez

Side view of the Monument to Mexican President Benito Juarez. The statue shows Juarez seated, being given a golden laurel wreath by Greek goddesses
Benito Juárez’s statue sure gets a wonderful view of the jacarandas. (Susan Flores/Pexels)

Inaugurated in September 1910, the Hemiciclo a Juárez is never more beautiful than during spring, when the monument’s golden laurels are nothing compared to the wreath of jacarandas that adorns Benito Juárez’s sculpture. 

To see the flowers in all their glory here, arrive early, before noon, if possible — the dry season in the capital makes the sun unbearable afterward. As a bonus, you’ll be able to walk across Alameda Central with total ease — and breakfast at nearby Café Tacuba.

Where: Avenida Juárez 50, Centro Histórico, Cuauhtémoc

Kiosko Morisco

Front view of the Kiosco Morisco in Alameda de Santa Maria La Ribera Park in Mexico City, with a carpet of jacaranda leaves on the cobblestoned path leading up to the Moorish gazebo.
A peaceful stroll through the Alameda de Santa María La Ribera park, with fallen jacaranda blossoms all along your cobblestoned path? Yes, please! (Diana Reyes/Pexels)(Diana Reyes/Pexels)

I doubt  José Ramón Ibarrola, the Mexican engineer who designed the domed, Moorish-style gazebo at Alameda de Santa María la Ribera park, imagined that his creation would become a perfect spot to watch the jacarandas bloom. But his Kiosko Morisco is the neighborhood’s pride and joy, particularly when the purple flowers carpet the park’s cobblestone walkways. 

I suggest arriving here around 6 p.m., once the heat of the day has ended and you can watch the sunset backlight the kiosk.

Where: Jaime Torres Bodet 152, Santa María la Ribera, Cuauhtémoc

The Open Gallery at Chapultepec Forest

Man standing on a sidewalk, taking photos with his phone of a line of large photos displayed professionally in black frames on the fencing to Chapultepec Forest along Reforma Avenue in Mexico City.
At the Open Gallery, which has free public exhibitions on the walls enclosing Chapultepec Forest along Paseo de la Reforma, you can get a two-for-one experience: exposure to world-class photography and the bliss of purple jacarandas everywhere. (CDMX government)

Inaugurated in 2002, the Open Gallery of the Chapultepec Forest Fences — located along Paseo de la Reforma on fences that enclose Chapultepec Forest — is a permanent public gallery designed to bring art to the masses. World-renowned photographers such as Levon Biss have exhibited their work there. 

In addition to being a free, open-air space, it also boasts one of Mexico City’s main jacaranda hotspots, hidden in plain sight. You can see the trees in bloom at any time of day, as the shade they provide prevents the sun from becoming too intense.

Where: Av. Paseo de la Reforma y Calzada Gandhi S/N, Chapultepec Polanco, Miguel Hidalgo.

Ciudad Universitaria

A brick buidling painted with various logos and images in the style of the Aztecs, with the National Autonoumous University of Mexico log at the center, surrounded by jacaranda trees in bloom on the Ciudad Universitaria campus in Mexico City.
The National Autonomous University’s lucky students get to see beautiful jacarandas on their grounds each spring, but anyone can walk around the campus. (UNAM)

Near the National Autonomous University (UNAM)’s Rector’s Building, in what’s colloquially known as the “Garden of Eden,” UNAM boasts expansive green spaces that are perfect for a picnic while admiring the jacaranda trees on the main campus. There’s an even better option here, though: Nowhere else in the world can you find a mural by Juan O’Gorman framed by branches overflowing with tiny purple blossoms. 

Give it a try this year!

Where: Ciudad Universitaria, Coyoacán

Andrea Fischer contributes to the features desk at Mexico News Daily. She has edited and written for National Geographic en Español and Muy Interesante México, and continues to be an advocate for anything that screams science. Or yoga. Or both.

Opinion: From rising seas to rising risks

By
Carol Graham
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Mexican soldiers hand out supplies in the wake of Hurricane John
Climate events like the Acapulco hurricane are getting more common and may eventually present a serious security threat — and Mexico is especially vulnerable. Former U.S. Climate Security Secretary Carol Graham explains the risks. (Sedena/Cuartoscuro)


Climate change is often framed as an environmental story — melting glaciers, rising seas, intensifying storms. Increasingly, however, it is also being viewed through a security lens. In Mexico and around the world, defense planners and policy experts are examining how climate pressures interact with political instability, economic fragility and resource scarcity.

The core idea is not that climate change directly causes conflict. Rather, it can magnify existing tensions. In Mexico, prolonged drought has strained already limited water supplies in northern states like Chihuahua and Sonora. Failed harvests undermine rural economies across the agricultural heartland. Severe storms along the Pacific and Gulf coasts can overwhelm infrastructure and erode public trust in governments struggling to respond. When layered onto pre-existing grievances — poverty, weak governance, regional rivalries — environmental stress can heighten the risk of unrest, displacement and instability.

Northern Mexico has long been threatened by a lack of rainfall. (Gabriela Pérez Montiel/Cuartoscuro)

This dynamic is often described as a “threat multiplier,” a term security expert Sherri Goodman helped bring into the mainstream to capture how climate impacts exacerbate underlying vulnerabilities rather than act alone.

Water scarcity provides a clear example. In regions where agriculture depends on predictable rainfall, prolonged drought can devastate livelihoods. Mexico’s northwest has faced acute water shortages in recent years, contributing to tensions over allocation between farming communities and cities. As incomes collapse, migration may increase — sometimes within national borders, sometimes across them to the United States. Receiving areas experience additional pressure on housing, employment and social services, which in turn can fuel political friction.

Rising sea levels pose another set of challenges. Mexico’s extensive coastlines — home to major ports, resort economies and fishing communities — face growing exposure to flooding and storm surges. Cities like Veracruz and Manzanillo, critical nodes in Mexico’s trade network, are vulnerable to damage that can ripple far beyond local communities, disrupting supply chains and economic stability.

Security institutions are taking notice. Military planners now assess how extreme heat may affect troop readiness, how storms could impair coastal installations or how humanitarian crises triggered by climate events might require rapid deployment of resources. In Mexico, the armed forces have played an increasingly visible role in disaster response, from hurricane relief to flood evacuations. Climate risk assessments are being incorporated into long-term strategic planning in multiple countries.

Importantly, the security framing does not replace environmental or economic perspectives; it adds another dimension. By examining how climate stress interacts with governance, demographics and development, policymakers aim to anticipate where pressures may converge — and how preventive measures might reduce the likelihood of crisis.

Adaptation and resilience planning are central to that effort. Investments in stronger infrastructure, improved forecasting, diversified water supplies and regional cooperation can help buffer societies against shocks. For Mexico, international collaboration is especially critical given shared river basins with the United States, cross-border migration dynamics and deeply integrated supply chains.

a dog lies down by a dry reservoir
Mexico has grappled with drought in recent years, and the changing climate makes it all the more likely to become a regular occurance. (Crisanta Espinosa Aguilar/Cuartoscuro)

The conversation has evolved significantly over the past two decades. What was once considered a peripheral concern in defense circles is now embedded in many strategic assessments. The question is less whether climate change matters for security, and more how governments and institutions can prepare for its cascading effects.

As communities worldwide — and across Mexico — confront intensifying weather extremes and long-term environmental shifts, the intersection of climate and stability is likely to remain a defining issue of the 21st century.

Sherri Goodman will speak in San Miguel de Allende on March 10, 2026, on “Threat Multiplier: Climate and Global Security in the 21st Century,” the final presentation of the season in the i3: ideas that inform & inspire series.

Goodman previously served as the first deputy undersecretary of defense for environmental security in the United States, where she helped integrate environmental considerations into military planning and policy. She currently serves as secretary general of the International Military Council on Climate and Security and is the author of “Threat Multiplier: Climate, Military Leadership, and the Fight for Global Security.” Tickets and information are available at i3SMA.org.

MND Local: Fire put out quickly at San Miguel de Allende’s El Charco del Ingenio

By
Cathy Siegner
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Nature trail in a semi-desert park with a wooden entrance sign that says in Spanish El Charco del Ingenio, jardin botanica. The entrance to the trail is winding and ringed on both sides by stone walls with landscaped cacti of various types.
Charco del Ingenio is a nature preserve and park in San Miguel de Allende popular with tourists and residents alike. (Festival de las Artes San Miguel de Allende)

Local volunteer firefighters quickly extinguished a spreading fire on Wednesday at the El Charco del Ingenio Botanical Garden on the western edge of San Miguel, but not before the flames scared onlookers.

San Miguel resident Barbara Pardue, who lives just a few minutes’ walk from El Charco, posted photos and videos of the fire on Facebook.

Birds flying out through smoke

“Thanks, bomberos [firemen]!!!” Pardue wrote. “They acted fast and had it under control in an hour.” 

She saw birds flying out of the area through the smoke, she said.

Ben Webster, a visitor from the United Kingdom who was exploring El Charco that day, said the fire started in the west and spread very quickly into the gardens due to a strong breeze. 

Webster said it reached the area around “The Starship” sculpture in the northern reserve.

“I spoke to a member of staff, who told me the gardens had been previously affected by minor fires, but nothing this bad,” Webster said. “To see lovely, tranquil, bird- and butterfly-filled paths which I had wandered only minutes before go up in flames was a chastening experience.”

Black and white smoke rises into the sky above the roofs of white Mexican adobe homes in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
The fire was visible from nearby houses. (Barbara Pardue/Facebook)

Concerns about the area’s ecosystem

The fire, while quickly extinguished, comes amid existing concerns about threats to the area’s ecosystem. No official cause of the fire has been given.

Four hectares of El Charco’s total of 67 hectares were burned about a year ago. Managers of the botanical garden have also warned that nearby construction of buildings or sports activities areas may disturb the integrity of the location’s ecosystem.

Three people in a semi desert park with cacti landscaping with their backs to the camera, watching a brush fire in front of them in the distance.
Observers watch the flames burning on El Charco’s north side on Wednesday. (Ben Webster)

Managers have also noted that the adjacent Parque Landeta, a 35-hectare area on both sides of the park’s reservoir, was loaned to the nature reserve by the municipality and has been developed as a natural park. However, the loan agreement ended in 2008, and Parque Landeta is now under city management.

According to El Charco’s website, the nature reserve has been a federally protected natural area since 2014. In 2023, a new plant in the pineapple family was discovered there, Viridantha minuscula, by biologist José Viccon, a professor at Mexico City’s Autonomous Metropolitan University. 

Members of the public are being asked to support the fire crews (bomberos) by donating bottled water, electrolyte/hydration drinks, energy bars and chocolate to the Central Fire Station at Arcos de San Miguel, +52 415 180 7211.

Cathy Siegner is an independent journalist based in San Miguel and Montana. She has journalism degrees from the University of Oregon and Northwestern University.

Short circuit blamed for blaze that destroyed dozens of businesses in Puerto Escondido

By
MND Staff
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Fire in Punta Zicatela, Oaxaca
Román Valencia, the municipal president of Santa María Colotepec, the town in which Punta Zicatela is located, said that the fire resulted in total losses for many businesses in the area. (Facebook)

Over 70 shops in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, were destroyed by a fire that broke out in the early hours of Friday, with no casualties or deaths reported. 

According to preliminary reports from authorities, the fire started around 1:15 a.m. in the restaurant area located on Avenida del Morro, along the beach strip of Punta Zicatela, a coastal destination popular among surfers and tourists looking for a laid-back atmosphere.   

Head of Oaxaca’s Heroic Fire Department Jorge Arturo Rivas Fernández del Río said that his station received the fire report at 1:30 a.m., after which emergency services arrived at the scene immediately. Firefighters worked to extinguish the fire until 7:30 a.m. 

Because the affected area was mostly made up of palapas — shelters with thatched roofs made from dried palm leaves and wood — Rivas said the fire spread rapidly. 

“It was a large-scale fire due to the high number of flammable materials found in the area. We’re talking about palapas, dry palms and wood,” Rivas explained to local media, adding that no casualties were reported thanks to the prompt actions of visitors in the area.  

Videos of the fire that circulated on social media show the area completely engulfed in flames, as firefighters, civil protection personnel and volunteers try to extinguish the blaze.  

Román Valencia, the municipal president of Santa María Colotepec, the town in which Punta Zicatela is located, said that the fire resulted in total losses for many businesses in the area. 

While there is no official statement as to what caused the fire and investigations are still ongoing, Rivas said the event was likely caused by a short circuit.  

Following the fire, the Santa María Colotepec City Council called on residents to join the cleanup efforts. City officials, members of the Mexican Army, firefighters, police officers, members of various organizations and volunteers all joined together to assist with the cleanup.

In a statement posted on its official Facebook page, the Santa María Colotepec City Council announced that, beyond the affected area, restaurants, hotels and tourist areas in Punta Zicatela continue to operate normally, highlighting that “now more than ever,” Punta Zicatela welcomes tourists and visitors. 

“In light of recent reports, we want to clarify that Punta Zicatela is not closed and continues to operate normally,” the statement reads. “Restaurants, hotels, shops and tourist areas are welcoming visitors with the warm hospitality that characterizes our region.” 

With reports from El Sol de México and Quadratín Oaxaca

MND Tutor | FIFA World Cup contest

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MND Plus
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Welcome to MND Tutor! This interactive learning tool is designed to help you improve your Spanish by exploring real news articles from Mexico News Daily. Instead of just memorizing vocabulary lists or grammar rules, you’ll dive into authentic stories about Mexican culture, current events, and daily news.

The World Cup is returning to Mexico, making it the first country to host the prestigious prize in soccer (and likely world sport) three times.

President Claudia Sheinbaum was given the first ticket for the opening game in a ceremony earlier this year. She is now giving her ticket away to a lucky winner, in a contest which will select a young Mexican woman as her replacement at the ceremony. 

Find out exactly how you can enter, and what President Sheinbaum said by reading the original article, click here.



Let us know how you did!

Check out our complete MND Tutor archive here!

How to become emperor of Mexico: The story of Agustín de Iturbide

By
Bob Pateman
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Agustín de Iturbide
Although his reign was short, Agustín de Iturbide was the first ruler and emperor of Mexico. (Public Domain)

Agustín de Iturbide was born in Valladolid (now Morelia) in 1783, the fifth child of the marriage, but the first boy to survive. His father, Joaquín de Iturbide, had come from a family of Basque gentry, but as a second son had not been in line to inherit the family lands. He followed the path of many young Spanish boys of the time and sailed to seek his fortune in New Spain. Here, he married María Josefa Arambúru Carrillo de Figueroa, Mexican-born but of pure Spanish blood, a criolla as this ethnic group was known at the time. In Spanish colonial society, your bloodline was vital for advancement, and thanks to this Spanish pedigree, their children would be free to seek careers in government or the military.

Early historians tended to present positive views of Agustín de Iturbide and were overgenerous in their praise. The story that the birth left María Josefa Arambúru Carrillo de Figueroa and her newborn son on the verge of death, and they were saved by a priest running to the local church to bring the cloak of a saint to throw over them, is worth repeating, but only if we do so with a degree of scepticism.

Agustín de Iturbide in Spain

Agustín de Iturbide
Agustín de Iturbide fought on the losing side of the Spanish in the Mexican War of Independence, but managed to become emperor of Mexico nonetheless. (Public Domain)

As a youth, Agustín de Iturbide was most noted for his excellent horsemanship, and given this background, it was hardly surprising that he entered the royal army. He also married well. Doña Ana María Josefa Ramona de Huarte y Muñiz was beautiful and well-connected; her father was a district governor. Her dowry paid for the hacienda of San José de Apeo that became their home. When not riding around his lands, Agustín de Iturbide was off fighting the rebellions that seemed as regular as the seasonal rains. 

It was a time of turmoil in Spain, which had become a battleground in the Napoleonic Wars, and for five years Napoleon’s brother Joseph sat on the Spanish throne. By 1813, Napoleon had been defeated, and Ferdinand VII  returned to the Spanish throne, but he was forced to accept liberal concessions. This had an impact on Mexican politics, which were already divided along the fault line of whether to remain a colony of Spain or to seek independence. 

Independence, of course, meant Mexico under the rule of the Spanish-born families now living in the colony. There might be some negotiation on the status of people of mixed mestizo heritage, but the Indigenous population was not included. It was a fluid and divisive issue, and Agustín de Iturbide was courted by the independent movement. However, he believed in monarchy and remained a loyal servant of Spain, the King and the Royal Army. 

The fight for independence in Mexico

In 1810, the priest, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, raised a great mob and attacked the cities of Guanajuato and Valladolid. As they marched through the mountains towards Mexico City, they were halted by a royal army under the command of General Trujillo. The young Iturbide had come away from the battle with his military reputation greatly enhanced and by 1813 had been promoted to the rank of colonel with command of his own regiment based in Celaya. In 1814, he fought under General Llano, a man history has judged as quite incompetent, as government forces defeated the rebels at Puruarán. With this victory, the greatest period of danger had passed, but small rebel groups fought on as troublesome bandits, and it was 1816 before the important province of Guanajuato, with its rich farmland and mines, was totally secure.

Agustín de Iturbide had made enemies along the way and, with the war fading into the background, his rivals struck out at him. He was criticized for his harshness, having put the wives and children of the rebels into prison. There seems to be little defense for this behavior, beyond the fact that it had been, in his opinion, a necessity at the time. Further claims of corruption were never proven, but these accusations stuck with him, and he resigned his commission and settled in Mexico City. Young, handsome and now a war hero, at least in the eyes of the Spanish, these years were not wasted but saw him build up contacts and a considerable personal fortune. As he approached his 40th birthday, Agustín de Iturbide had done well in life. 

The war concludes

By 1820, the Mexican War for Independence was flaring up again in the south, this time under a new and capable leader, Vicente Guerrero. Short of competent officers, the  Spanish viceroy recalled Agustín de Iturbide to the army. This year of 1820 also brought the threat of revolution in Spain, and although Ferdinand stayed on the throne, he had to agree to accepting reforms.

Agustín de Iturbide
The Embrace of Acatempan between Agustín de Iturbide and Mexican patriot and future president Vicente Guerrero. (Public Domain)

For Agustín de Iturbide, this was a turning point. Liberal reforms in Spain endangered the wealth of the landed gentry, and he was adamant that no such thing should be allowed in Mexico. In February 1821, Agustín de Iturbide met with the rebel Guerrero and presented his Plan of Iguala. The vision was an independent Mexico under the title of Imperio Mexicano. Catholicism would be the only religion, and all people of Spanish blood would be welcomed as citizens of the new country. This government would be a monarchy, and if Ferdinand VII would not forsake troublesome Spain and take the throne for himself, he should nominate another European prince. 

The rebel Guerrero joined him, but the initial enthusiasm faded amongst de Iturbide’s own officers, and many marched back to Mexico City. When the Spanish Viceroy, Ruiz de Apodaca, rejected the proposal, Iturbide started for Mexico City with whatever men remained loyal to him. Valladolid was besieged, but there was no fighting, only a series of meetings after which the city elders joined the rebellion. Pueblo was taken and Mexico City was surrounded. Viceroy Ruiz de Apodaca had been removed from office by frustrated army officers and when the newly appointed viceroy, O’Donojú, arrived in Mexico, Iturbide left the siege to meet with him.

The Treaty of Córdoba

On Aug. 24, 1821, O’Donojú and Agustín de Iturbide signed the Treaty of Córdoba, declaring Mexican independence. Whether the two men had the authority to make such a decision was debatable, but by this point, Iturbide commanded the only effective military force in the country.  On Sept. 27, 1821, he marched into Mexico City with the Army of the Three Guarantees, leaving what remained of the royalist forces to flee to Veracruz. 

Iturbide was now the man of the moment, and his years of courting important people in the clergy and amongst the landowners paid off. He became President of the Provisional Governing Junta, a body tasked with selecting the five-person Regency that would temporarily govern newly independent Mexico. Iturbide made sure the Regency consisted of his allies, who duly elected him as President of the Regency. This political appointment, combined with command of the army, left him as the major political force in the country as they waited on news from Spain.

Emperor of Mexico

Their wish was still for the beleaguered Ferdinand VII to sail to Mexico and take the throne himself. However, back in Spain, Ferdinand was gaining the upper hand against the liberal movement and felt he could rein in the troublesome colonies. He denounced the Treaty of Córdoba and forbade any of his family from accepting the Mexican throne. If Spain could not provide an emperor, Mexico would find one for itself. Agustín de Iturbide was virtually doing the job anyway, and in May, a crowd, encouraged by men of his own regiment,  gathered outside his home, insisting he take the throne with cries of  “Viva Iturbide!”

After some political manoeuvring and behind-the-scenes deals, a tame Mexican Congress declared him emperor. On July 21, 1822, with the capital decked out in flowers, banners, streamers and flags, Agustín de Iturbide entered Mexico City’s great cathedral for an elaborate coronation ceremony.

Agustín de Iturbide
The proclamation of Agustín de Iturbide as emperor of Mexico in Mexico City, (Public Domain)

He inherited a nearly bankrupt Mexico and the expense of the coronation, as well as the lavish court he established, upset many people. His reign would last less than a year, but it has left one important legacy: the red, white, and green of the Mexican flag were originally chosen to represent the three guarantees of the Plan of Iguala: freedom, religion and union.

Bob Pateman lived in Mexico for six years. He is a librarian and teacher with a Master’s Degree in History.

El Jalapeño: Coca-Cola celebrates 100 years in Mexico by aiming for 100% market share

By
El Jalapeno
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A woman with an IV of coca cola
If Mexico didn't have a problem with Coke before, it will now. Wait a minute...

All stories in El Jalapeño are satire and not real news. Check out the original article here.

MEXICO CITY — Coca-Cola México marked its centennial anniversary Thursday with a gala ceremony in the capital, during which executives outlined an ambitious strategic vision for the company’s second century: finishing the job.

“We are proud of what we have achieved,” chief executive Ricardo Valdés told attendees, gesturing toward a slide that showed Mexico’s per-capita Coca-Cola consumption as the highest in the world. “But when we look at that remaining 13%, we don’t see a ceiling. We see an opportunity.”

Three bottles of Coca-Cola on a pile of ice cubes and against a red background.
This is the recommended daily dose for children under 5, says Coca Cola.  (Alessandro D’ Antonio/Unsplash)

The announcement was met with sustained applause from bottling partners, retail executives and several government officials who had accepted complimentary VIP seating and did not appear to see a conflict of interest.

The 100% consumption target, which the company described as “ambitious but achievable,” will be pursued through a multi-pronged strategy including expanded rural distribution, new smaller bottle formats designed for infants and a nationwide awareness campaign reminding Mexicans that water, while technically available, lacks the taste profile of Coca-Cola.

Nutritionists were not contacted for comment.

In the indigenous highlands of Chiapas, where Coca-Cola already functions as a de facto ceremonial beverage in some communities, local distributors confirmed they had received the new targets and considered them “essentially already met.”

President Sheinbaum, asked about the announcement at her morning press conference, noted that her government supports responsible corporate investment in Mexico, took a sip of Coke from a glass on her podium, and moved on.

Check out our Jalapeño archive here.

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