Government sources said the eight Mexican navy personnel who crashed in Michoacán shortly after takeoff were on an Airbus AS565 Panther helicopter like this one owned by the US Navy. (Chad R. Erdmann/Creative Commons)
Three members of the Mexican Navy are dead and two others are missing after a military helicopter crashed off Mexico’s southern Pacific coast on Wednesday morning.
The Ministry of the Navy (SEMAR) reported the accident in a statement early Wednesday afternoon, saying that it occurred shortly after a Panther helicopter took off from a naval vessel located 200 nautical miles, or 370 kilometers, southwest of Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán.
It said that eight navy officers were on the helicopter, and that three of them — two women and one man — were killed.
SEMAR said that two officers are missing and that three others were rescued and were on their way to port to receive “specialized medical care.”
Those rescued were reported in “stable” condition. A search for the two missing navy personnel was continuing.
SEMAR said that “the causes” of the accident were not yet known. At the time of the accident, the navy was carrying out “operations for the maintenance of the rule of law,” the ministry said.
At its weakest point on Monday, the peso was trading at 20.05 to the dollar. (Shutterstock)
The Mexican peso appreciated against the US dollar for a fifth consecutive day on Wednesday to reach its strongest position since January.
After closing at 16.95 to the greenback on Tuesday, the peso strengthened to 16.85 on Wednesday morning before weakening slightly. The USD:MXN exchange rate was 16.88 pesos to the US dollar at 3:30 p.m. Mexico City time, according to Bloomberg.
The 16.85 rate was the peso’s strongest position since Jan. 8 when the currency closed at 16.84 to the dollar.
The El Financiero newspaper reported that the expectation that the United States Federal Reserve will cut interest rates “later this year” as well as a weakening of the dollar “allowed the Mexican peso” to appreciate for a fifth consecutive day on Wednesday.
The USD:MXN exchange rate was 17.09 pesos to the US dollar at the close of markets last Wednesday, meaning that the peso has appreciated about 1.2% since then.
The Mexican peso benefited in 2023 from the significant difference between the Bank of Mexico’s benchmark interest rate — currently set at 11.25% — and that of the Fed (5.25-5.5%).
Mexico’s central bank is expected to make an initial cut to its record-high rate in the first half of 2024, but most analysts believe it will not undertake an aggressive rate-easing cycle this year, and thus monetary policy could continue to benefit the peso for some time yet.
Inflation declined steadily throughout most of last year but at 4.45% in the first half of February is still above the Bank of Mexico’s 3% target.
Buoyed also by strong incoming flows of remittances and foreign investment, the peso appreciated around 13% last year after trading at 19.5 to the dollar at the beginning of 2023.
The impressive performance resulted in the currency being dubbed the “super peso,” a nickname that has reappeared in more than a few headlines this week.
The median forecast of 20 foreign exchange strategists polled by Reuters between March 1 and 4 is that the peso will weaken to 18.24 to the greenback by this time next year. “Forecasts ranged from 15.50 to 19.00 per dollar,” the news agency reported.
While most of Mexico has abandoned Daylight Saving Time, some regions have chosen to keep it to stay in harmony with the U.S. (Renel Wackett/Unsplash)
In October 2022, most of Mexico ended Daylight Saving Time (DST) after the Senate passed a bill to eliminate biannual clock changes. However, according to the current Time Zone Law, 33 municipalities that share a border with the United States still observe DST.
On Sunday, March 10, the following municipalities will set their clocks forward one hour at 2 a.m:
Chihuahua: Ciudad Juárez, Ojinaga, Ascensión, Coyame del Sotol, Guadalupe, Janos.
Tamaulipas: Nuevo Laredo, Guerrero, Mier, Miguel Alemán, Camargo.
Nuevo León: Anáhuac.
Baja California: Tijuana, Mexicali, Ensenada, Playas de Rosarito, Tecate and San Quintín.
Daylight saving time was adopted nationwide in 1996 with the idea of using more natural light and less electricity for lighting buildings, as well as facilitating commerce with the U.S.. However, the arguments in Mexico to keep it nationwide were not strong enough for those who wanted it repealed. Northern border cities, however, were allowed to keep DST in order to continue encouraging U.S.-Mexico trade.
During the discussion to approve the new law, the head of the Senate Energy Commission Rocío Abreu Artiñano, noted that energy savings from using DST had been less than 1% of the total energy consumed each year.
However, a study conducted by the National Institute of Electricity and Clean Energy (INEEL), reported that the implementation of DST in 2006 resulted in the prevention of 1,427 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere and a reduction of 2,754 million barrels of oil in fuel consumption for the generation of electrical energy.
The use of DST is a controversial topic worldwide. Over 140 countries have implemented it at some point but approximately half have since abolished it.
As day length variations are minimal around the equator, most tropical regions do not change their clocks. Currently, less than 40% of countries in the world observe DST.
Protesters used a Federal Electricity Commission truck to ram through the wooden doors of Mexico's historic National Palace Wednesday. (Cuartoscuro)
Students protesting the abduction and presumed murder of 43 students in Guerrero in 2014 used a pickup truck to break open wooden doors at the National Palace while President Andrés Manuel López Obrador spoke at a press conference inside the historic building on Wednesday morning.
Video footage shows young men — reportedly students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College in Guerrero — pushing a Federal Electricity Commission vehicle into doors at an entrance to the National Palace on Moneda Street in Mexico City’s historic center.
While protesters streamed into the presidential residence following the breach, they were stopped by military police before reaching the Treasury Hall, where President López Obrador was holding a press conference. (Cuartoscuro)
The National Palace is both the official residence and working office of Mexico’s President Andres Manuel López Obrador.
The protesters broke two wooden doors, and while some of the men reportedly entered the National Palace, none made it into the Treasury Hall, where López Obrador was speaking to journalists at his morning press conference, or mañanera.
Government personnel barricaded that room. Outside the National Palace, authorities used tear gas to disperse protesters.
Asked about the incident, López Obrador said that the government wouldn’t “repress” the protest.
At his press conference on Wednesday, President López Obrador said that advances have been made in the contentious Ayotzinapa 43 case. But the president is running out of time to fulfill a pledge to solve the case before he leaves office this year. (Presidencia)
“We’re going to achieve it, and we’re going to find the young men,” López Obrador said.
He didn’t express any great concern for the damaged doors, saying that they will be fixed and that there will be “no problem.”
The president claimed that the protesters aimed to “provoke” the government. He asserted that they were “being manipulated” by groups opposed to his administration.
“We don’t want confrontation, we’re making progress in the investigation,” said López Obrador, whose government published a new report on the almost decade-old Ayotzinapa case last September.
The Centro Prodh human rights organization, which has provided lawyers for the missing students’ families, said on social media that “fathers and mothers are not being ‘manipulated’ by @CentroProdh” or the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
“They have agency over their process,” the NGO said on the X social media platform. It said that it “regretted” that “the protest of some young men escalated” to the breaking down of the National Palace doors.
Before that post, Centro Prodh provided some “context” to the events that unfolded on Wednesday morning. It said that the military — which has long been suspected of involvement in the students’ disappearance — is refusing to hand over relevant documents and that there has been an “absence of meetings” with the president for months.
The NGO also said that there is a “governmental attempt to divide the families” of the students.
“… We urge the reestablishment of respectful dialogue supervised by international human rights authorities,” Centro Prodh said.
López Obrador said that lawyers and advisers for the students’ families were “not allowing” him to speak with the parents, but stressed that his government was willing to meet with them.
Although nearly a decade old, the unsolved case still sparks protests, like this one last month at Mexico’s senate by parents of the victims. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)
Millions of Mexicans have participated in hundreds of protests since the 43 students disappeared in Iguala, Guerrero, on the night of Sept. 26, 2014. Protests involving current Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers’ College students have on occasion turned violent.
In recent times, some have maintained a sit-in protest at the Zócalo, Mexico City’s main square opposite the National Palace, as relatives, friends, Ayotzinapa students and others continue to seek justice and some sense of closure in the mystery-shrouded case.
On the night they disappeared, the 43 students were allegedly handed over to a local crime gang by corrupt municipal police. There have been well over 100 arrests in connection with the students’ disappearance, but no one has faced trial or been convicted of the crime.
The previous government’s official version of events — the so-called “historical truth” — was widely rejected, and the current government initiated a new investigation and pledged to definitively determine what happened to the young men. López Obrador now has less than seven months left in office and thus risks finishing his six-year term without the case having been resolved.
The case is a major blight on the record of former president Enrique Peña Nieto, who had been in office 22 months when the students disappeared. Mass protests held in the weeks and months after the crime occurred called for Peña to resign, but the president weathered the storm — at least by his own reckoning — and fully completed his term in 2018.
The Vaso de Cristo area is abnormally dry this year and a fire started in the basin on Sunday. (ROGELIO MORALES/CUARTOSCURO.COM)
A grassy, shrubby basin that serves to catch runoff rainwater from Mexico City is so dried out by central Mexico’s drought and water shortage that it caught fire on Sunday and burned for three days.
Thought to be under control on Tuesday morning, the blaze in the El Cristo basin in México state later reignited and consumed even more dried-up vegetation, bringing the total area scorched to between 30 and 45 hectares — a significant portion of the 118-hectare area.
In a social media post later Tuesday afternoon, state Civil Protection officials declared, “With the support of authorities at all levels, we managed to contain the grassland fire in the El Cristo regulatory basin.” However, a popular Mexico City-area X account noted Wednesday morning that the smell of burning grass continued to linger.
The smell of burnt vegetation wasn’t the only worry. Because El Cristo was a receptacle for sewage for decades, nearby residents have been affected by “intense clouds of smoke,” according to newspaper El Universal. “Pollution by PM2.5 particles composed of highly toxic chemical substances [were] reported by Azcapotzalco authorities,” the newspaper wrote. Azcapotzalco is Mexico City’s northwesternmost borough, adjacent to El Cristo.
El Universal added that classes and activities were suspended at nearby schools, sports complexes and cultural centers, and that firefighters had to shift to another area at one point due to a toxic cloud. The area remained on environmental alert Wednesday for smoke clouds.
The fire occurred at the Vaso Regulador El Cristo, on the border of Mexico City and Naucalpan, México state. “Vasos reguladores,”common sites in Mexico, are regulating ponds or retention basins that help stop flooding by holding excess water from man-made storm drains that are overwhelmed during heavy rains.They can also be used to store water for irrigation, improve water quality by filtering out pollutants and sediments, and provide a habitat for plants and animals.
Debido a la cantidad de humo que emana del Vaso Regulador el Cristo en Naucalpan por incendio de pastizales, incendio que ya fue sofocado, fueron suspendidas las clases en planteles educativos de la zona, incluyendo el CCH Azcapotzalco. pic.twitter.com/URwPmbsdtD
Videos posted to social media show the smoke that covered the surrounding areas
El Cristo captures runoff water from Mexico City and its neighbors, which are situated in high mountain valleys with no natural outlet.
Under normal conditions, El Cristo is lush with greenery and has enough standing water to be called a lake. In past years, people would come to the site to go kayaking, take a stroll or enjoy a family picnic.
But with below-average rainfall in 2023, and drought conditions that have been intensifying over the past four years, Mexico is experiencing a water crisis. Three reservoirs that provide the Mexico City metropolitan area with 25% of the water for over 23.5 million residents are at about one-third of capacity. In October, Mexican officials began restricting water from those reservoirs by roughly 8%, and enacted an additional 25% cut in November.
Of all the foreign carmakers with Mexican factories, GM accounted for the most light vehicles exported in February, with 68,949 of them sent abroad, or 24% of total exports. (GM de México)
Last month, foreign automakers operating in Mexico exported 282,608 light vehicles, the most ever in the month of February and the biggest year-over-year monthly increase in 12 years according to Milenio newspaper. More than 75% of the exports were classified as light trucks (including SUVs, pickups).
General Motors topped February’s list of auto industry exporters with 68,949 vehicles sent abroad, mostly to the United States. Other big exporters were:
Nissan (41,632)
Stellantis (33,124)
Volkswagen (30,663).
General Motors and Nissan reported significant export increases over their February 2023 performances — 35.9% and 30.1% respectively — but Volkswagen made even more impressive gains, with an increase of 115.7%.
Total car exports from Mexico in 2024 have so far reached 536,975, a 14.6% increase over January-February 2023. The value of auto exports for 2023 surpassed US $188.9 billion — up 14.3 percent over 2022 — and a record high.
Automobile production in Mexico in February alone reached 318,725 vehicles, nearly 8% more than were assembled in February 2023. This lifted total 2024 production to 625,804, an 8.64% rise over January-February 2023.
A worker puts together a sedan at the BMW plant in San Luis Potosí. (BMW)
INEGI data shows that nearly 3.78 million automobiles were produced in Mexico last year, a 14.2% rise in annual terms but slightly behind the 3.81 million units assembled in 2019. Still, the year-over-year increase in percentage terms was the largest recorded in 13 years.
The automotive industry includes the auto parts sector which is the world’s third-largest.
The domestic car market is also thriving, although it is impacted by the fact that local consumers predominantly purchase imported vehicles and used cars. According to INEGI, 113,258 vehicles were sold in the domestic market last month, lifting total 2024 domestic vehicle sales to 225,357. These numbers do not distinguish between vehicles produced in Mexico versus imports.
The automotive industry anticipates a 10.8% increase in production this year, exceeding 4 million units, according to Odracir Barquera, CEO of the Mexican Automotive Industry Association.
The Guadalajara International Airport plans to open its new runway in May. (Shutterstock)
With an eye on underlining its status as the major air travel hub of western Mexico, Guadalajara has invested 16 billion pesos (US $889 million) over the past five years for comprehensive improvements at its international airport.
The improvements include a new terminal and a second runway, which is expected to open in May, making Guadalajara’s the fourth airport in Mexico — after Mexico City’s two airports and the Cancún International Airport — to feature two runways.
The 3,500-meter runway will have the capacity to manage 60 operations per hour, alternating with the existing runway because they are only 275 meters apart.
Once the Transportation Ministry completes the certification and publications processes, the new runway will begin operations, airport director Martín Pablo Zazueta said.
Zazueta also said the construction of the new terminal should be completed by the end of June. The mixed-use area that will house shops, restaurants and a Hilton Garden Hotel could be inaugurated next month.
“We will then finish up the roads and facades so that the renovation is completed in December,” he said. “Afterward we will begin building a second terminal but that will be in a separate location so passengers will not be inconvenienced.”
In addition to a new runway and terminal, the Guadalajara airport plans to add a mixed-use area with shops, restaurants and a hotel. (Wikimedia Commons)
“We are looking to consolidate our status as a world-class airport” with the first stage of construction, which will be completed in December, Zazueta said.
“It’s a fact that Guadalajara has the opportunity to reinforce our claim as the hub of western Mexico,” he said. “And we already are, in many aspects, but these improvements will also allow us to take advantage of the dispersal of traffic from the Mexico City area.”
The Guadalajara International Airport is part of Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico, a firm that manages 14 airports in western Mexico, including five of the country’s top 10: No. 3 Guadalajara, No. 4 Tijuana, No. 6 Los Cabos (Baja California Sur), No. 7 Puerto Vallarta (Jalisco) and No. 9 León (Guanajuato).
Guadalajara, with 14.7 million passengers in 2023, is the firm’s biggest airport with Tijuana a close second (11 million passengers).
The headquarters of the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) in Mexico City. (Shutterstock)
Nearshoring has reached the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) in the form of an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that offers investors exposure to around 70 North American companies and trusts considered “direct beneficiaries” of the growing business trend.
Aztlan Equity Management’s North America Nearshoring Stock Selection ETF is the first ETF accessible via the BMV that specifically seeks to take advantage of the nearshoring phenomenon.
It was first listed on the BMV on Monday via the Stock Exchange’s International Quotation System, which allows investors to invest in shares and ETFs listed offshore. The ETF — which had an opening price of 364 pesos (US $21.60) — has been traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) since Nov. 30.
The fund, identified by the ticker symbol NRSH, “seeks to invest in stocks that are based in North America, including the U.S.A, Mexico and Canada, and that have been identified by Aztlan as direct beneficiaries of the nearshoring phenomenon,” says Aztlan Equity Management, which has offices in the U.S. (McLean, Virgina), Mexico (Monterrey, Nuevo León) and Hong Kong.
It is comprised of companies and trusts that operate in sectors including real estate, ground transportation, air freight and logistics, transport infrastructure and marine transportation. Among the 70 or so companies and trusts that make up the ETF are TFI International, CSX Corporation, Canadian Pacific Kansas City and the Mexico-based real estate investment trusts Fibra Macquarie and Fibra Mty. The 30 best-performing companies in the pool selected by Aztlan contribute to the ETF share price at any given time.
“The new ETF marks a turning point in the sector of investment funds that are listed on the stock exchange. The investors who decide to invest in the NRSH ETF will have broad exposure to the nearshoring phenomenon in a single instrument,” said Alejandro Garza, Aztlan Equity Management’s founder.
The fund includes the rail company Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. along with other businesses that directly benefit from nearshoring. (Canadian Pacific Kansas City)
“There’s never been a fund integrating these three markets,” he said, referring to the U.S., Mexico and Canada, the three signatories to the USMCA free trade pact.
“That, and the fact that it’s the first nearshoring fund, also makes it a watershed,” Garza said after the ETF was listed on the NYSE last November.
Over half of the companies in the fund — 57% — are based in the United States, while 23% are in Mexico and 20% are in Canada.
In an interview with Bloomberg Línea, Garza said that US $10 million has been invested in Aztlan’s nearshoring ETF since it listed on the NYSE three months ago.
“We think that is a good performance [but] our objective is to get to $100 million by the end of the year,” he said.
Now that the ETF is accessible via the BMV, investing in the fund will be easier for Mexicans.
Mexico is already benefiting from the nearshoring trend, but foreign investment is expected to continue to increase in coming years as companies act on plans already announced and other foreign firms take the decision to establish a presence here due to the country’s proximity to the United States, competitive labor costs and other factors.
Art Walk is one of the most beloved and long-running events in Los Cabos. (All photos by Art Walk San José/Instagram)
Art Walk is one of the longest-running cultural happenings in Los Cabos, but the seasonal event, which has run since 2006 is more than just an opportunity for visitors to admire the colorful canvases of local artists or bask in the beauty of San José del Cabo’s historic Gallery District. It’s a showcase for the heart of the city.
When and where to see Art Walk
Art Walk takes place throughout the high tourist season, every Thursday evening from November through June.
Art Walk is held every Thursday evening from 5 to 9 p.m., during the November through June high season in Los Cabos. It’s free and open to the public. Many of the participating galleries where Art Walk takes place, which extend their normal business hours for this event, are clustered along a two-block-long stretch of cobblestone-studded Calle Álvaro Obregón, between Calle Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla and Calle Vicente Guerrero in downtown San José del Cabo.
However, the event also branches off onto nearby side streets and starts only a block or so from Plaza Mijares, the city’s broad and lovely main square, which has been renovated in recent years and offers new charms alongside its notable historic attractions.
Art Walk was founded by local gallery ownersand gallery visits continue to be the focus of the event, from showcases for contemporary Mexican artists, like Ivan Guaderrama Art Gallery and Galeria de Ida Victoria, to those spotlighting folk art and jewelry design. But the event also draws wandering musicians and street performers, and other local businesses stay open late too, giving Art Walk nights a special energy and glow.
Historical attractions
The downtown area outside the Art District’s borders also comes alive though, and nearby attractions bordering Plaza Mijares – the city’s main plaza – also remain open, including the historic Catholic church.
Los Cabos, the name given to the municipality when it was formed in 1981, references the municipality’s two cities: Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo, its most important city and municipal seat, respectively. Because the focus on tourism here really took off when the National Fund for Tourism Development (Fonatur) took an interest in Los Cabos in the 1970s, many visitors are unfamiliar with the rich history and culture present here, particularly in San José del Cabo.
San José is one of the longest continually occupied communities on the Baja California peninsula, dating back to the founding of its Jesuit mission in 1730 by Nicolás Tamaral and José Echeverría. Tamaral was subsequently killed in a 1734 revolt by Indigenous Pericú people, an event depicted in a colorful mosaic above the door of the city’s historic downtown Catholic church, the Parroquia Misión San José.
The church is lit up for Art Walk evenings and open to the public. It has been at its current site in downtown San José del Cabo since the middle of the 19th century, and in its current form since being rebuilt following a hurricane in the early 20th century. Like City Hall with its historic 1930s-era clock tower, it’s an instantly recognizable landmark adjacent to Plaza Mijares, which also comes alive on Art Walk nights.
Drinking, dining and romance in San José del Cabo
The Art Walk also serves as a cultural showcase for San José del Cabo and the city’s historic Art District.
One of the many great aspects of Art Walk is that between gallery visits and downtown perambulations, there’s also plenty of time to eat and drink. Helpfully, the city’s best bars and restaurants are found in the Gallery District, or within a block or two of its borders. These include Los Tres Gallos, Los Cabos’ premier destination for traditional Mexican cuisine, whose San José del Cabo location is set in the heart of the Gallery District on Calle Obregón and features a two-level dining area built around three intertwined huanacaxtle trees.
La Lupita Taco & Mezcal is another local favorite for Art Walk interludes, thanks to its colorful courtyard dining atmosphere and menu specialties like pato con mole tacos, plus a superb collection of artisanal mezcals. The Gallery District is also home to the original location of Baja Brewing Company, the first microbrewery ever built in Los Cabos and maker of some of the municipality’s best hamburgers.
The signature pleasures of Art Walk in San José del Cabo, from walking hand-in-hand along cobblestone streets to being serenaded by wandering musicians to sipping wine and enjoying al fresco fine dining, are such that they’ve contributed to the event’s reputation as one of the best romantic activities for couples in Los Cabos.
Chris Sands is the Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best, writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook, and a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily. His specialty is travel-related content and lifestyle features focused on food, wine and golf.
Lila Avilés with her Barbie Role Model doll. (Mattel)
Mexican filmmaker Lila Avilés was honored with a Barbie doll as part of the brand’s “Role Models” line, released yearly to commemorate International Women’s Day.
This year’s Role Model theme was storytelling.
Mattel, the company behind the world-famous doll Barbie, chose Avilés in recognition of her achievements in the film industry. She’s joined by actresses Helen Mirren and Viola Davis along with Canadian country-pop artist Shania Twain, Australia’s Kylie Minogue, German comedian Enissa Amani, Japanese model Nicole Fujita and Brazilian Indigenous influencer Maira Gomez.
The 42-year-old filmmaker is the director of the acclaimed film The Chambermaid (2018), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), and her latest movie, Tótem (2023), has been selected for the long list of the Best International Feature category at the Oscars.
Speaking to Variety magazine, Avilés said her selection was an “incredible, beautiful and surreal surprise.” The doll features her with a camera on her shoulder, a script in one hand, and her cat by her feet.
“It is not only me who the doll is honoring, but my entire career,” she added.
Avilés most recent move, Tótem, is a candidate for the Best International Feature category at the Oscars. (IMDb)
Tótem, which delves into childhood and the idea that childhood defines our destiny, has been showcased in over 100 film festivals around the world and will soon be released in more than 40 countries, including the United States, where it is still being screened. The movie will also be featured on Criterion Channel and is now available on Netflix Latin America.
“People ask me if my movies are feminist. In as much as my protagonists are women, they are, in an organic way,” she noted. “The Chambermaid, my feature debut, gave voice to a woman who’s ostensibly invisible to many,” she said.
Avilés was born in Mexico City in 1982. She started her career in theater before moving into filmmaking. Her first feature film earned her various national and international awards and was screened in more than 70 film festivals worldwide.
“This Barbie is more than a trophy for me; it’s like my Oscar,” Avilés told newspaper Milenio. “I love what I do very much, and I hope I can continue on this path to inspire many more women,” she said.
