Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, alias "El Nini," was the leader of the security apparatus of the Los Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. (Social media)
Mexican federal forces have arrested Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, alias “El Nini,” the security chief for the “Los Chapitos” faction of the Sinaloa Cartel, in Culiacán, Sinaloa.
Army and National Guard agents captured Pérez at 1:27 p.m on Wednesday, at a house in Culiacán’s Colinas de la Rivera neighborhood. Although he tried to escape over the rooftops, he was detained with only two shots fired and handed over to the Special Attorney General’s Office for Organized Crime (Femdo) in Mexico City by 3:47 p.m.
Pérez Salas is wanted in the United States for fentanyl conspiracy, fentanyl trafficking conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices and money laundering conspiracy. (DEA)
Pérez is accused of heading “Los Ninis,” the security apparatus of Los Chapitos, which is led by the sons of jailed capo Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. Mexican Army documents identify him as responsible for ordering the Culiacanazo – the violent outbreak in Culiacán that followed the arrest of Los Chapitos’ leader Ovidio Guzmán in October 2019 and forced President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to order Guzmán’s release.
Pérez has also spearheaded Los Chapitos’ war against rival criminal group Los Rusos – another faction of the Sinaloa Cartel which is led by former Sinaloa second-in-command Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García – for control of Mexico’s northwest border region.
In February 2021, a federal grand jury in the United States indicted Pérez for conspiracy to traffic cocaine and methamphetamine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices and retaliation against witnesses. In April of this year, another U.S. federal grand jury indicted him for additional crimes including fentanyl trafficking and money laundering for Los Chapitos.
The U.S. State Department has offered a US $3 million reward for information leading to Pérez’s capture since December 2021.
In an interview with newspaper El Universal, national security expert David Saucedo explained that Pérez’s capture is a clear sign that U.S. and Mexican forces are still taking a hard line against Los Chapitos. Since thesuccessful capture of Ovidio Guzmán in January 2023 and his extradition to the U.S. in September, Los Chapitos have attempted to lessen the pressure on themselves by publicly declaring a ban on fentanyl production and trafficking.
“By sending an open letter, Los Chapitos have attempted to convince and influence public opinion, trying to counter the DEA’s narrative that points to them as the main smugglers of fentanyl into U.S. cities,” Saucedo said. “None of this has worked… Washington is still on the trail of the structure led by El Chapo’s sons, which it wants to dismantle completely.”
The Mexican Attorney General’s Office (FGR) estimates that Los Chapitos is made up of at least 5,000 armed men and controls drug trafficking in northern Sinaloa, western Sonora and the states of Nayarit, Chihuahua and Baja California Sur.
The bank's governing board cited declining inflation as a reason for the rate cut. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s annual headline inflation rate rose in the first half of November as lower summertime electricity rates came to an end in close to a dozen cities.
The end of summer rates for electricity impacted inflation in the first half of November. (Shutterstock)
On a positive note, the annual core inflation rate, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, declined to 5.31% from 5.5% in October.
Among the drivers of inflation were processed foods, beverages and tobacco, which were 6.8% more expensive than a year earlier, and school fees, which rose 6.6% on an annual basis.
An increase in electricity prices in 11 cities contributed to the slightly higher headline inflation rate in the first half of the month, and to a larger extent, the 0.63% fortnight-over-fortnight increase.
Power prices rose 22.3% on a national basis compared to the second half of October as summer rates came to an end in Mexicali, Ciudad Juárez, Culiacán, Chihuahua, Hermosillo, Matamoros, Colima, La Paz, Huatabampo, Jiménez and Esperanza.
Salsa verde is costlier to make after the price of green tomatoes (tomatillos) shot up 18.8% in the first half of November. (Archive)
The hike in the cost of electricity was higher than that for any other individual product or service reported by INEGI.
The price of green tomatoes shot up 18.8% compared to the second half of October, poblano chili peppers were 14.3% more expensive, airplane tickets increased 11.6% and providers of professional services charged clients an extra 8.7%.
The goods and services that decreased the most in price on a fortnight-over-fortnight basis were limes (-15.8%); zucchini (-5.3%); onions (-3.9%); and hotels (-3.8%).
The uptick in inflation to 4.32% – slightly higher than the consensus forecast of economists polled by Reuters and Bloomberg – came after the annual headline rate declined during nine consecutive months between February and October.
Inflation has been above the Bank of Mexico’s 3% target, give or take a percentage point, for almost three years. Seeking to bring inflation under control, the central bank began a monetary policy tightening cycle in June 2021, adding 725 basis points to its benchmark interest rate to reach 11.25% last March, a record high.
The bank’s board maintained that rate at five subsequent monetary policy meetings, and is expected to do so again when its members meet for the final time this year on Dec. 14.
Bank of Mexico Governor Victoria Rodríguez said last week that cuts to the key interest rate will occur when macroeconomic conditions allow them, adding that “we do not see that for the rest of this year.”
An initial cut to the record high 11.25% rate is considered likely in the first or second quarter of 2024, provided inflation returns to the downward trend seen throughout most of 2023.
Tulum airport will make it easier for tourists to visit the Riviera Maya and relieve pressure from busy Cancún. (Cuartoscuro)
Quintana Roo in the Yucatán Peninsula is set to become the first state in Mexico to have four international airports.
The Tulum airport, which is set to open on Dec. 1, will join the state’s existing airports in Cancún, Cozumel and Chetumal.
Cozumel
The island of Cozumel was the first major tourist destination with an airport in Quintana Roo. It was inaugurated in 1943 and has two separate areas for national and international flights with eight boarding gates – six for international flights and two for domestic flights.
According to data from Grupo Aeroportuario del Sureste, which operates nine airports in the southeast, Cozumel airport received over half a million visitors in 2021. It surpassed that figure a year later, receiving over 600,000 travelers in 2022.
Cancún
The government of Quintana Roo said Cancún International Airport saw over 30 million passengers in 2022. (Elizabeth Ruíz/Cuartoscuro)
Next is the Cancún International Airport, which opened in 1974. It is Mexico’s second-busiest airport (following the AICM in Mexico City) and the third-busiest in Latin America for international passengers.
The Cancún airport has two runways and four terminals that serve the 64 airlines operating in the airport, offering 118 international and 29 domestic destinations.
Chetumal
The Chetumal airport, located in the south of the state, also opened in the 1970s and was recently renovated by the government of López Obrador.
According to Aeropuertos y Servicios Auxiliares, a state-owned corporation which operates and part-operates several airports, the Chetumal airport received 279,525 passengers in 2021 and over 370,000 visits in 2022.
Tulum
The new Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport in Tulum is one of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s major projects, along with the Felipe Ángeles International Airport in Mexico City and the Maya Train, which will traverse the Yucatán Peninsula.
“The transformation is advancing by leaps and bounds. In the south-southeast we have major works and municipalities connected through the Maya Train, the train of social justice,” said Quintana Roo Governor Mara Lezama in a recent visit to the airport facilities.
Even though there are already four airports in the state, the new Tulum airport will make it even easier for tourists to visit the Riviera Maya. Until now, Tulum-bound tourists have had to drive there – and, in the case of those coming from Cozumel, take a ferry as well.
The new Tulum airport, scheduled to open next month. (Mara Lezama/X)
The airport will have the capacity to receive 5.5 million passengers per year. It is located within 100 miles of the resort destination of Playa del Carmen, the colonial city of Valladolid and the Chichén Itzá archaeological site.
The airport occupies over 75,000 square meters of construction and according to Governor Lezama, will be Mexico’s first “green” airport, designed to protect and preserve local wildlife and mitigate environmental impact.
A golden pistol belonging to Mexican revolutionary hero Pancho Villa is up for auction in the United States. (Rock Island Auctions)
A golden gun that once belonged to famed Mexican revolutionary Francisco “Pancho” Villa will be sold at auction, with an expected sale price between US $650,000 and $950,000.
That’s according to the Rock Island Auction Company of Bedford, Texas, which is running the “Premier Firearms Auction” for three days starting Dec. 8.
Pancho Villa, the famed Mexico Revolutionary leader, has become a Mexican folk hero – although in life, his exploits saw him hunted by both the Mexican and U.S. governments. (Library of Congress/Wikimedia)
Villa’s gun is a gold-plated, first-generation Colt Single Action Army Revolver. It has carved pearl grips and two inscriptions of Villa’s name, including one on its backstrap that reads, “Al General Francisco Villa/de/su División del Norte.”
The gun comes with authentication; factory records confirm it was shipped on April 18, 1917 to the pawn shop City Loan & Jewelry Co. in El Paso, Texas, an area filled with Villa allies.
Joseph B. Ravel, the owner of the store, sold guns to Pancho Villa, and on one occasion, U.S. Secret Service agents investigated him after Villa made a purchase at his store. His nephew, Sam, also sold guns and had ties to Mexican revolutionaries, including Villa.
Mexico has designated 2023 as “The Year of Francisco Villa” marking 100 years since “The People’s Revolutionary” was assassinated in a shootout on July 20, 1923 after being ambushed in Parral, Chihuahua.
The weapon comes with an engraved backstrap, which carries a dedication to Villa. (Rock Island Auctions)
Villa remains one of the most famous and popular figures in Mexican history, a Robin Hood–style folk hero remembered as a defender of the common people against the rich and powerful. However, Villa and his band of revolutionaries are also known for a run of murderous cruelty that brought retaliation from both the U.S. and Mexican armies, neither of which managed to capture him.
The tornado took residents of western Michoacán by surprise on Tuesday. (@vozmichoacan/X)
A tornado came for a town in Michoacán yesterday, ruining avocado crops and leaving many wondering, “what just happened?”
The tornado formed late Tuesday afternoon in western Michoacán. After passing through a rural area, residents attacked the tornado with hail cannons to try to reduce its size and stop it from reaching the town of Peribán. Primarily used to decrease the severity of hailstorms, hail cannons are shock wave generators that are supposed to reduce the size of hail by disrupting the formation of new clouds, however there is limited scientific evidence to support their use.
Una fuerte tormenta, con lo que pareciera ser un tornado, azotó este martes el municipio de #Peribán, en Michoacán, dejando afectaciones en huertas de aguacate.
El extraño fenómeno climatológico fue descrito por algunas personas como una “culebra de agua” o una “tromba”. pic.twitter.com/HbqFPAzsEs
No casualties or injuries were reported following the event, though local avocado growers say the tornado caused damage to their orchards.
In footage shared on social media, a storm cloud appears to descend to the ground in a funnel before quickly dissipating.
Though more common in the northern part of the country, this is not the first time a tornado has caught central Mexico by surprise. On average, Mexico reports around 50 tornadoes a year, the majority of which are of the non-supercell, or less dangerous, type. The tornado that formed in Michoacán on Tuesday was of this type; some Mexicans refer to tornadoes of its shape as “water snakes.”
According to José Francisco León, a researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico’s (UNAM) Physical Geography department, peak tornado season in Mexico runs from May to August.
Authorities are currently monitoring the weather to be able to alert the population ahead of another similar event.
The three presidential hopefuls: Claudia Sheinbaum (left), Samuel Garcia (center) and Xóchitl Gálvez (right). (Photos from social media and Cuartoscuro)
Mexico’s presidential election “pre-campaign” period officially began Monday, 195 days before citizens go to the polls to elect a successor to Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO).
While they have plenty of time to sell themselves to voters ahead of the June 2, 2024 election, the three confirmed presidential hopefuls all got off to a running start, holding “pre-campaign” launch events in different cities around the country.
Candidates have been holding rallies across Mexico as the election season begins to ramp up. Here, Xóchitl Gálvez speaks to supporters in Chihuahua. (Xóchitl Gálvez/X)
Claudia Sheinbaum, Xóchitl Gálvez and Samuel García also promptly released their first promotional commercials, known in Mexico as “spots.”
Let’s take a look at how the presidential aspirants – presented here in alphabetical order by surname – are attempting to connect with voters and position themselves as the best choice for the nation next June.
Xóchitl Gálvez Ruiz – Broad Front for Mexico (PAN, PRI, PRD)
The candidate for the Broad Front for Mexico (FAM), an opposition bloc made up of the National Action Party (PAN), the Institutional Revolution Party (PRI) and the Democratic Revolution Party (PRD), gives an overview of her life story in a 71-second commercial posted to social media on Monday.
Xóchitl Gálvez is the opposition for the Broad Front for Mexico, comprised of the nations traditional ruling powers. (Jorge Ortega/Cuartoscuro)
“I was born here in Tepatepec, Hidalgo, 60 years ago,” begins Gálvez, who has Indigenous Otomí ancestry.
“At the age of eight, I sold the famous Jell-Os here to help my family,” she says, emphasizing her humble beginnings in life as she stands outside the Tepatepec market.
Gálvez, a PAN senator currently on leave from that position, goes on to recount her departure from Hidalgo to “try her luck” in Mexico City.
“No manches [holy crap], arriving at the age of 17 to live here in [the sprawling borough of] Iztapalapa was a great challenge,” says the FAM candidate, who is well known for her use of colloquial language.
Esta es mi historia, llena de sueños y de esfuerzo.
Quiero un mejor país porque México merece más, tú mereces más.
Continuing a tour of her past, Gálvez appears in front of the National Autonomous University Faculty of Engineering where she studied computer engineering and a building where the smart buildings entrepreneur began her “dream to be a businesswoman.”
“My life’s cause has been Indigenous peoples,” adds the presidential aspirant, who headed up Mexico’s Indigenous affairs agency during the presidency of Vicente Fox (2000-06).
Gálvez subsequently acknowledges that her 2010 tilt at the governorship of her home state of Hidalgo was unsuccessful, but notes that she did win the mayoral election in the Mexico City of Miguel Hidalgo in 2015.
Toward the end of the “spot,” she reminds voters that as a senator she voted in favor of enshrining the old-age pension and government social programs in the constitution, seeking to debunk claims from President López Obrador and others that she is anti-welfare.
“This is the door that I knocked on and wasn’t opened for me,” Gálvez says, referring to her attempt to confront López Obrador at one of his morning press conferences at the National Palace earlier this year.
“But millions of Mexicans opened their doors to me. Thanks to them, today I want to be your candidate and together we’re going to open the doors of the [National] Palace for everyone,” she says before the commercial ends with a voice-over of the slogan “Xóchitl, strong like you!”
Samuel García Sepúlveda – Citizens Movement
“I’m Samuel García,” the Nuevo León governor proclaims confidently in his maiden pre-campaign commercial as he walks through a public park.
Popular Nuevo León Governor Samuel García is an outlier in the presidential race, having made a late entrance to proceedings. (Samuel Garcia/Twitter)
“What they don’t tell you is that I defeated the old politics of Nuevo León,” García says, referring to rule of the PRI and the PAN in the northern border state.
“There are those who say I’m a Whitexican, the one [who spoke about] the low salary of 50,000 pesos [per month],” he adds, mentioning his remark in 2020 that there are people who are “happy” despite earning what he considered to be a miserly wage.
“What they don’t tell you is that we reduced extreme poverty by half.”
Seguro te han contado muchas cosas sobre mí, pero te invito a conocer a Samuel García, El Nuevo. 🍊👊🏻
.
.
El precandidato único a Presidente. Mensaje dirigido a militantes y simpatizantes de Movimiento Ciudadano. pic.twitter.com/NMQc64PygW
García, who was a federal senator before he became governor, also acknowledges that he is known for scolding his wife, influencer Mariana Rodríguez, for “showing too much leg” in a 2020 Instagram live conversation between the pair.
“Yes, I made a mistake and I’m still learning,” he says, adding that “what they don’t tell you” is that he is the first governor in the history of Nuevo León to have a cabinet with more women than men.
“There are those who say that I’m always traveling. What they don’t tell you is that in just two years we brought US $42 billion in foreign investment [to Nuevo León],” says the 35-year-old who has made several trips abroad to court companies such as Tesla and Kawasaki.
“… There are those who say that I’m very new, and yes, in that, they’re right. I’m the one with new ideas, the one [attracting] new investment and the one with new ways of doing politics,” asserts García, who is set to take a six-month leave of absence of governor from early December to focus on his presidential dream.
“The new thing is to make the impossible possible. And if you don’t believe me, ask Nuevo León,” he concludes.
Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo – Morena, PT, PVEM
“Mexico is being reborn with shared prosperity, with democracy, rights and freedoms, with investment for well-being,” the 61-year-old former Mexico City mayor and presidential frontrunner declares in her first pre-campaign “spot.”
Claudia Sheinbaum, former mayor of Mexico City and Morena candidate for president in 2024. (Cuartoscuro)
With that opening, Sheinbaum, who will represent the ruling Morena party as well as the Labor Party (PT) and the Green Party (PVEM), effectively says that López Obrador – her political mentor – already has Mexico on the right track.
“Security is provided with justice. We don’t want to make peace with corruption and privileges. Returning to the past is not an option,” she continues, implying that she will perpetuate the process of “transformation” the current president and his government claim to be undertaking.
In contrast to her rivals, Sheinbaum doesn’t dominate screen time in her first pre-campaign commercial. Instead, numerous “everyday” Mexicans appear as the Morena presidential hopeful speaks.
Hoy iniciamos una nueva etapa con la alegría de saber que vamos por el camino correcto, el de la honestidad y resultados, la construcción de los grandes derechos y el amor al pueblo de México.
Les comparto el primer spot de nuestra precampaña a la Presidencia de México. pic.twitter.com/7pBSbGwuY0
The apparent aim? To show that she – as AMLO frequently claims to be – is a champion of the ordinary people of Mexico (rather than an advocate for the rich and powerful) and thus their logical choice next June.
“The greatness of Mexico is in our people, culture and history,” says Sheinbaum, a physicist and environmental scientist who was environment minister in Mexico City when López Obrador was mayor in the early 2000s.
“I’m proud to be part of the transformation, proud to be Mexican! Let’s keep building the best Mexico possible,” she concludes.
Polls show that Sheinbaum, who has already released a number of other “spots,” is a clear favorite to win the election next June and become Mexico’s first female president.
A recent poll conducted by the El Financiero newspaper found that she had 46% support, ahead of Gálvez on 28% and García on 8%.
The pre-campaign period concludes in January, while the official campaign period – during which the candidates will go head to head in debates – starts March 1 and runs through May 29.
In addition to choosing a new president on June 2, Mexicans will renew both houses of federal Congress and elect thousands of people to state and municipal positions.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies ([email protected])
One of the bungalows of Ocean Oasis in Agua Blanca. (Courtesy: Curtis and Tracy Goure)
With over 10,000 km of oceanfront, Mexico is still blessed with beaches that are (relatively) untouched. But more and more are being “discovered” by Mexicans and foreigners, bringing the perennial challenge of balancing conservation and economic development.
One area experiencing this quite acutely is the Oaxaca coast from Puerto Escondido southwest towards the already-developed Huatulco. As local newsletter publisher Tony Richards says, “The world has discovered Puerto Escondido and the world has been coming.”
Sea turtles remain economically important to Mazunte, just down the coast. But instead of slaughtering them as in the past, the town depends on them for tourism. The animals are the basis for Mazunte’s status a Pueblo Mágico. (Alejandro Linares García)
Puerto Escondido has a strong reputation for being a hidden getaway known only to the adventurous. In the colonial period, it hid pirate ships from authorities. Through the 20th century, development was spotty at best, overlooked by other areas on Mexico’s Pacific coast.
The boom
It was always known. Puerto Escondido has long attracted those looking for a quiet getaway, and Zipolite Beach is internationally famous among professional surfers.
The main attraction has always been long stretches of (nearly) undeveloped beach. My first visit 20 years ago took me to La Ventanilla. Looking down a beach with no human structures in sight was terrific.
Nearly unspoiled beaches like La Boquilla and El Venado exist, but no one expects them to last forever.
Puerto Escondido (simply called “Puerto” by locals) is the cultural and economic center of the region, now a bustling small city with plenty of bars, restaurants and all kinds of lodging. It and Huatulco attract about 65% of the visitors to Oaxaca’s coast. These visitors are mostly Mexicans from central and northern Mexico (thanks to the airport). Foreign visitors that make it here are overwhelmingly from North America, but it is becoming more popular with Europeans.
The recent growth of Puerto has pushed some locals and others to explore the coast for more quiet, but the city is still different from Puerto Vallarta. Many elements of a small town remain. Walking the old city and waterfront esplanade (malecón) remains popular, especially during cooler temperatures. But traffic and the growing presence of English underscores how Puerto is changing.
These changes prompt development along nearby beaches, but it needs to be more balanced. For example, Mazunte is developing rapidly partly because of its turtle fame and status as a Pueblo Mágico. But places like Agua Blanca are still pretty quiet due to the need for more reliable electricity, potable water, and cell phone service.
Playa Carrizalillo. (Flickr)
Why now?
Development of the Puerto stretch of coast has proceeded slowly until recently as several factors come together.
First, a 20-year effort to build a modern highway connecting Oaxaca city with Puerto Escondido may finally open “soon” as progress is made on a tiny stretch left. While the new and large airport has been significant, the highway means cutting travel time from 6 hours on winding roads to 2, meaning that visitors to Oaxaca no longer “need to choose” between the two regions.
The next was the pandemic, says Richards. Ironically, it brought many people to the area looking to escape, assembling them in Puerto. He says it and the Starlink have been “game-changers,” as digital nomads are now flocking to the area.
Effect on the local economy and culture
Overview of Ocean Oasis in Agua Blanca, a still relatively isolated beach community. (Courtesy: Curtis and Tracy Goure)
As expected, the boom in tourism and the arrival of short and long-term new residents produced mixed results. Almost everyone in the region is involved in tourism in some way, at least part of the year, so more tourists means more opportunities. Those opportunities are not equally “shared” as those with outside investment money or connections to government tourism agencies (often the same) tend to benefit more. Farmers and fishermen struggle to maintain access to land, water, and fishing rights they need to maintain traditional livelihoods, even well inland from the beach.
There are complaints that the influx of outsiders (foreigners and Mexicans) is gentrifying the area, driving land prices beyond the reach of locals. Richards notes that land prices have gone up as much as fourfold only in the past few years, but beachfront property has not been within reach of most locals for a long time. He adds that local reaction to new outsiders is mixed, with some even stating “…if [foreigners] respect us and our laws they have a “right to come here.”
The most important is developing the region without spoiling the laid-back feel that brings people here and, more importantly, the environment. Richards notes, “You can maintain an attraction if you plan for the growth and act accordingly.” Unfortunately, Mexico’s political class does not have a very good track record here.
Tourism development in Mexico has long been plagued by insufficient planning, even for basics like water and sewerage, and uncontrolled growth that ignores federal laws related to ejido (communal) land rights and environmental protection.
The main challenges ahead
Slawomir and Barbara Grunberg established the Beachfront Paradise Boutique Hotel after their successful pierogi restaurant in Puerto Escondido.
Two issues right now have provoked the ire of residents of all types. One is that insufficiently treated sewage is polluting beaches. The other is the development of Punta Colorada, still mostly pristine beach and lagoon but very close to the new airport. The federal government expropriated it in the 1970s for development, but only recently has its interest in it returned.
Local concerns are often ignored, both because of the attitudes of Mexico’s elites and because locals often feel that they cannot do anything about what is happening.
This may not be the case in Puerto Escondido. Richards states that younger Mexicans, in particular, are “furious” about these two cases and more, and they make up a larger percentage of tourists and new residents than in other oceanside communities. Complaints and protests are far stronger than what was seen in the past, including one just last September in Puerto.
New property owners, aware of the development down the road, are not waiting for the government to protect their investment. Slawomir and Barbara Grunberg of Beach Front Paradise and Curtis and Tracy Goure of Ocean Oasis in Agua Blanca organize with neighbors to educate themselves on local law and custom, not only to get basic services (like electricity) but also to protect the environment of “their little piece of paradise.”
With any luck, such grassroots organizations can mitigate some of the effects of chaotic development, keeping the beaches from Puerto to Huatulco a quiet getaway for the next generation.
Leigh Thelmadatter arrived in Mexico over 20 years ago and fell in love with the land and the culture in particular its handcrafts and art. She is the author of Mexican Cartonería: Paper, Paste and Fiesta (Schiffer 2019). Her culture column appears regularly on Mexico News Daily.
It was a cold, snowy Wednesday morning in Chihuahua as the season's first winter storm swept through. (meteoredmx / X)
Cold front number 11 has brought low temperatures and precipitation, resulting in some snowy landscapes in various regions of Mexico, particularly in the north.
Residents of these regions took to social media and shared photos of snow-covered areas in their communities.
The mountainous northern states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas and Durango all saw snow as a result of the weather. (MxPerspectiva/X)
On Wednesday morning, the National Meteorological System (SNM) reported that the first winter storm in the northern plateau would bring rain or snowfall to the mountainous regions of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, Zacatecas and Durango.
Frigid temperatures in high-altitude areas of the northwest, north, northeast, east and center of Mexico are also expected due to the polar air mass associated with the cold front.
In the mountains of Chihuahua, Durango and Sonora, the SNM has forecast frost and temperatures oscillating between -10 and -5 degrees Celsius.
High altitude areas of Baja California, Coahuila, México state, Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Nuevo León, Puebla, Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas can expect temperatures between -5 to 0 degrees Celsius, while some regions of Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Michoacán, Morelos, Oaxaca, Tlaxcala and Veracruz will see minimum temperatures ranging between to 0 to 5 degrees Celsius.
Residents in the capital covered up as temperatures dropped to single figures. (Andrea Murcia/Cuartoscuro)
Mexico City will see minimum temperatures of 6 to 8 degrees Celsius and maximums of 20 to 22 degrees, while México state can expect minimum temperatures of 5 to 7 degrees Celsius and maximums of 18 to 20.
Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Yucatán can expect normal temperatures ranging from 35 to 40 degrees Celsius; Guerrero, Chiapas and Oaxaca will feel slightly cooler at 30 to 35 degrees.
The low-pressure system will extend from the northeast of the Gulf of Mexico to the country’s southeast, interacting with other low-pressure channels in Mexico. Torrential rains are predicted in Chiapas, Tabasco, Veracruz and Oaxaca, while heavy rains are forecast for Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, Guerrero and Campeche.
Likewise, high humidity levels will increase the likelihood of snow or sleet in mountainous areas with elevations above 4,200 meters. Some of the possibly affected areas are: Nevado de Toluca, Popocatépetl, Iztaccíhuatl, Sierra Negra, La Malinche, Cofre de Perote and Pico de Orizaba.
Fidel Castro, the leader of the Cuban Revolution. (Britannica)
Almost everyone in the world knows that Fidel Castro – assisted by his brother Raúl and Argentine doctor Ernesto “Che” Guevara – led the movement that overthrew the Fulgencio Batista regime in Cuba in 1959. What many people don’t know is that the Cuban Revolution was hatched in Mexico and inspired by the Mexican Revolution.
On July 26, 1953, trying to overthrow the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, Castro led a group of 150 revolutionaries in an attack on the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba. The assault was defeated and Castro was sentenced to 15 years in prison, but due to public pressure, he and his brother Raúl along with a large number of other Cuban revolutionaries were released from prison in 1955 as part of a general amnesty for political prisoners.
Raúl and the other exiles fled to Mexico and Fidel followed shortly afterward, flying into Mérida on July 7th and making his way to Mexico City. He met up with Raúl at the apartment of Cuban exile María Antonia Gonzaléz in the Tabacalera neighborhood, where he met Che Guevara for the first time. The apartment became the command post and one of a network of clandestine houses in Mexico City that became safe locations for the revolutionaries.
Meanwhile, the safe houses began training exiles for the return to Cuba. Castro imposed strict and rigorous regulations for the soldiers. The revolutionaries practiced their rowing at the lake in Chapultepec Park, received physical and self-defense training from Mexican professional wrestler Arsacio Vanegas and held target practice at the Los Gamitos range in the borough of Alvaro Obregón.
In March 1956, Guevara headed up a guerilla camp at the Santa Rosa ranch, close to the small town of Santa Catarina Ayotzingo in the state of México. Raúl was responsible for rounding up the Cuban exiles who had fled to Mexico. For assistance in acquiring weapons and transportation to Cuba, Fidel relied on Mexican gunsmith and weapons smuggler Antonio del Conde Pontones, alias “El Cuate.”
The Cuban exiles – known as the July 26 Movement, or M-26-7 – had left Cuba without anything, including resources. Castro and his troops lived on beans and rice, frequenting taco stands. Revolutions need money, however, and Castro developed a bold plan to obtain funding. In “Guerrillero del tiempo,” a memoir that brings together hours of interviews between the revolutionary and the Cuban journalist Katiuska Blanco, Fidel recounted a trip to the US-Mexico border at McAllen, Texas, where he swam across the Rio Grande and illegally entered the United States to meet with the disgraced former Cuban President Carlos Prío Socarros, who had been exiled after being deposed by Batista’s 1952 coup – Castro and Prio had a common enemy in Batista.
Street in La Habana Vieja. (Unsplash)
Castro recounts in his memoir – “Guerrillero del Tiempo” written by biographer Katiuska Blanco based on hours of interviews – that he was “humiliated” to ask Prio for money that he knew had been stolen from the Cuban Treasury but took the cash anyway.
Aware of the Castro brothers’ plan to overthrow Batista, the Federal Security Directorate (DFS), the Mexican political police, had been monitoring the movements and actions of the July 26 Movement. A report authored by DFS Captain Fernando Gutiérrez Barrios, dated June 24, 1956, and kept hidden for decades in the confidential files of the Ministry of the Interior, outlined their plans.
Barrios was a feared agent of the DFS and for years was responsible for the persecution of peasant, union, student and guerilla movements of the last century. In July 1956, Castro and Guevara were detained. After several weeks of detention, former President Lázaro Cárdenas intervened to have them released. A Constitutionalist general in the Mexican Revolution, Cárdenas had been a very popular left-leaning reformer in office and continued to support Castro after the victory of the Cuban Revolution.
In an odd twist, Castro and Barrios formed a relationship based on friendship and mutual respect. Castro told biographer Blanco that he considered Barrios a “friend” and a “gentleman and honorable man.”
After Castro and Guevara were released, they began implementing their plan. After 18 months of planning, their soldiers had been trained, they had acquired the necessary weapons and Antonio del Conde had found them a ride: a small, second-hand yacht named the “Granma,” moored in Tuxpan, Veracruz. They planned on meeting with the remainder of the insurgents at the Mi Ranchito hotel in Xicotepec de Juárez in the state of Puebla to finalize their last-minute preparations.
Before leaving Mexico City, Castro went to meet with his friend Barrios one last time where he outlined their plans. In a 1999 interview with BBC, Barrios admitted that he knew all the details of their plans and intentionally delayed an investigation to give them time to embark for Cuba.
On November 25, 1956, the 82 insurgents arrived in Tuxpan and squeezed themselves onto the Granma, a boat that would normally accommodate 10 to 12 people, and left on their treacherous trip to Cuba.
When they reached Cuba’s shores, they shipwrecked on the southern coast and were spotted and ambushed by Cuban authorities, who killed all but eight men. Fidel, Raúl, Guevara and a few of their men – with only seven guns between them – fled to the Sierra Maestra mountains.
The members of the July 26 Movement spent the next two years recruiting and training more insurgents and fighting Batista’s military. On New Year’s Eve, Batista fled Cuba for the Dominican Republic, and Fidel’s 9,000-strong guerilla army marched into Havana in triumph. Castro became Prime Minister of Cuba and remained in power for 49 years, dying in 2015 at the age of 90.
Castro admitted that Cuba’s revolution probably would not have been possible without the Mexican Revolution that preceded it 50 years earlier. It provided the blueprint for the Cuban Revolution. “Mexico was a country that had carried out a great revolution in the second decade of the 20th century, a revolution that had a lot of prestige and left behind a lot of progressive thinking and a stable government,” he recalls in “Guerrillero del tiempo.”
Reminders of Castro’s 18-month exile in Mexico are still visible today in Mexico City. The building at 49 José de Emporan where María Antonia González had an apartment is marked with a plaque commemorating the location where Castro and Guevara first met. Café La Habana, which claims to have been the site of meetings between the Cuban revolutionaries, still stands in the Juárez neighborhood.
Fernando Barrios went on to become the director of the DFS from 1964 to 1970, during the height of state terror in Mexico. The controversial agency, which committed a litany of human rights violations and suffered from pervasive corruption, was disbanded in 1985. The building that served as the DFS headquarters, where Castro and Guevara were detained, is now the Sitio de Memoria Circular de Morelia in Roma Norte. It stands as witness to the human rights violations that occurred during the 1960s and ‘70s and is dedicated to preventing those practices in the future.
Sheryl Losser is a former public relations executive, researcher, writer, and editor. She has been writing professionally for 35 years. She moved to Mazatlán in 2021 and works part-time doing freelance research and writing. She can be reached at [email protected]
As the 30th anniversary of the signature of the historic NAFTA trade agreement approaches, we look at how Mexico's trade has exploded and foreign direct investment has flowed into the country. (Shutterstock)
Jan. 1, 2024 will mark the 30th anniversary of the commencement of the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA.
Superseded by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, on July 1, 2020, the three-way pact had a profound impact on the Mexican economy during its 26-year lifespan – both good and bad, depending on who you ask.
President Bill Clinton signs supplemental agreements to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1993. (Wikimedia Commons)
One thing that cannot be disputed is the enormous boost NAFTA gave to Mexico’s trade relationship with its northern neighbor, which just happens to be the world’s largest economy.
A decade after it took effect, the International Monetary Fund said in a 2004 paper that the result of the free trade agreement “has been to spur a dramatic increase in trade and financial flows among the NAFTA partners and to contribute to making North America one of the most economically integrated regions in the world.”
Almost 20 years later, North America remains a highly-integrated economic area, and the value of Mexico’s exports to the United States hit a new record high in the first nine months of 2023.
As Mexico’s exports to North America – and the world – increased over the past 30 years or so, so too did foreign direct investment (FDI) to Mexico.
The US-Mexico-Canada Agreement was signed in 2018 by all three nations’ leaders. Mexico’s president, Enrique Peña Nieto (left), signed the free trade agreement that succeeded NAFTA shortly before leaving office. (Ron Przysucha/U.S. Department of State)
This edition of “Mexico in Numbers” examines a range of data related to Mexican exports and FDI inflows, with special emphasis on how export revenue and investment have increased in recent decades.
Unless indicated otherwise, the data in this article comes from official Mexican sources, including the Economy Ministry and the national statistics agency INEGI.
The path to (what should soon be) US $600 billion
Mexico’s exports in 1993 – the year before NAFTA took effect – were worth $51.88 billion, with almost 83% of that total coming from shipments to the United States.
In 1994, the total value of exports shot up 17% to $60.88 billion as the value of goods sent to the U.S. increased by $8.7 billion, or 20%, in the space of a year.
In 2000 – the seventh full year with NAFTA in effect – the total value of Mexico’s exports reached $166.12 billion, an increase of 220% compared to 1993.
Apart from a couple of hiccups, the value of Mexico’s exports continued to grow through the first decade of the new century to reach $298.47 billion in 2010, an impressive 475% increase compared to the pre-NAFTA level.
In 2014 – as the three-way trade pact celebrated 20 years of existence – the value of exports hit $396.91 billion before declining 4% to $380.55 billion in 2015 after NAFTA turned 21 on Jan. 1 of that year.
There was another decline in 2016, but the value of exports Mexican exports hit a new milestone the following year, exceeding $400 billion for the first time ever. The $409.43 billion value of exports in 2017 was almost 700% higher than the 1993 pre-NAFTA level.
In that year, exports to the U.S. accounted for 80% of the total, with shipments to Canada, Mexico’s other NAFTA partner, representing just under 3%.
The value of Mexico’s exports continued to increase in 2018 and 2019 before hitting a roadblock in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when production at many factories shut down for part of the year.
Despite the decline, export revenue remained above $400 billion, and the sector came roaring back in 2021 – the first full year of USMCA – to hit a new record high of $494.76 billion, an increase of almost 19% compared to 2020.
The value of exports rose again in 2022, increasing 17% to hit $578.19 billion. That monetary figure is a whopping 1,014% higher than the $51.88 billion in export revenue generated in 1993.
In the first nine months of this year, exports were worth $441.53 billion, a 2.7% increase compared to the same period of 2022.
If the 2.7% increase is maintained until the end of the year, Mexico’s exports will be worth just under $594 billion in 2023. Will 2024 be the year they hit and go beyond $600 billion?
Where do Mexico’s exports go?
Given that the world’s largest economy is on its doorstep, it’s no surprise that Mexico sends the lion’s share of its exports to the United States.
In the first nine months of 2023, about 83% of Mexico’s export revenue came from goods sent to the United States, with shipments to other trade partners around the world generating the remaining 17%.
Data for 2021 provides a more detailed breakdown of the destination of Mexican exports.
In that year, 80.8% of Mexico’s export revenue came from shipments to the U.S., while 2.6% came from goods sent to Canada, meaning that 83.4% of total export income came from USMCA partners.
The following were Mexico’s top 10 export destinations in terms of revenue in 2021:
United States, $399.97 billion, 80.8% of the total.
Canada, $13.06 billion, 2.6%.
China, $9.25 billion, 1.9%.
Germany, $7.54 billion, 1.5%.
South Korea, $6.91 billion, 1.4%.
Spain, $4.91 billion, 1%.
India, $4.26 billion, 0.9%.
Japan, $4.18 billion, 0.8%.
Brazil, $3.65 billion, 0.7%.
Colombia, $3.43 billion, 0.7%.
Which sectors are Mexico’s largest exporters?
The manufacturing sector brought in 89% of Mexico’s export revenue in the first nine months of 2023. Just over 35% of the $393.06 billion in manufacturing sector export revenue came from shipments of vehicles and auto parts, while almost 65% came from non-auto manufactured goods.
Revenue from the export of vehicles and automotive parts accounted for just over 35% of total manufacturing sector exports. (MIREYA NOVO/ CUARTOSCURO.COM)
Oil shipments brought in 5.6% of export revenue in the first nine months of the year, while agricultural products accounted for 3.7% of the total.
The mining sector generated 1.6% of Mexico’s export revenue between January and September.
Mexico’s growing share of the market for exports to the U.S.
Mexico had a 15.5% share of the export market to the U.S., ahead of Canada and China, which both had a 13.7% share in the first nine months of 2023.
In 2023, Mexico has displaced China as the biggest exporter to the United States after the Asian economic powerhouse had a 16.5% share of the market in 2022, ahead of Mexico, which had a 14.2% share.
Data shows that Mexico’s share of the export market to the U.S. has gradually increased over the past 15 years or so. It had an 11.1% share in 2009, a 13.1% share in 2015 and a 13.7% share in 2020.
Meanwhile, China’s share of the same market has declined in recent years amid its trade war with the U.S.
China had a 21.2% share of the market in 2015, but that figure dropped to 17.9% in 2020 and continued to fall in subsequent years to reach 13.7% in the first nine months of 2023.
Exports as a percentage of GDP
Mexico’s exports contributed to 43.4% of national gross domestic product in 2022, according to the World Bank. That figure has trended upwards over the past 50 years or so.
Exports made up 25.4% of GDP in 2000, 29.7% in 2010 and 34.5% in 2015.
Imports to Mexico
Imports to Mexico have also increased significantly over the past 30 years.
Mexico imported goods worth $65.36 billion in 1993, but that figure shot up 21.4% to $79.34 billion in 1994 after NAFTA took effect.
(Crisanta Espinosa Aguilar/Cuartoscuro)
In 2000, the value of imports to Mexico was $174.45 billion, while in 2010 imported goods were worth $301.48 billion, a 361% increase compared to the pre-NAFTA level.
The value of imports went above $400 billion for the first time in 2017 and exceeded $500 billion in 2021.
Imports increased again in 2022, hitting a record high of $604.61 billion. Mexico thus recorded a trade deficit of $26.42 billion last year.
Imports were worth $451.62 billion in the first nine months of 2023, a 0.9% decline compared to the same period of last year.
How many free trade agreements does Mexico have?
The levels of growth in exports and imports seen in recent decades quite simply wouldn’t have occurred without the existence of free trade agreements between Mexico and various nations/economic blocs around the world.
AMLO hosted European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen at the National Palace in June to discuss trade, security and energy policy. (AMLO/Twitter)
Mexico has 15 FTAs covering trade relationships with more than 50 countries, according to Tetakawi, a company that helps foreign firms establish a presence in Mexico.
Foreign direct investment in Mexico over the past 40+ years
FDI in Mexico could exceed $40 billion in 2023. Forty years ago it totaled just $683.7 million.
Data shows that foreign investment in Mexico has generally trended upward since 1980, although there have been years when FDI has decreased significantly from the previous year, including in 1995 in the wake of the Mexican peso crisis, and in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.
Let’s first take a look at how FDI inflows changed in 10 year intervals between 1980 and 2010.
Just over $1.6 billion in foreign investment came into Mexico in the first years of the 80s, but that figure more than doubled to reach $3.72 billion in 1990, when former president Carlos Salinas de Gortaria held office for the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI.
In 2000 – the final year of more than seven decades of uninterrupted PRI rule – FDI totaled $18.24 billion, representing a remarkable 1,025% increase compared to 20 years prior.
In 2010, with ex-president Felipe Calderón in office, FDI was $27.18 billion, an increase of 49% compared to 2000.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Mexico was up 2.4% in Q3 2023 over Q3 2022. (SE)
FDI hit a record high of $48.35 billion in 2013, a figure that was boosted significantly by the sale of brewer Grupo Modelo to Anheuser Busch InBev, a Belgian multinational.
While FDI hasn’t exceeded $40 billion since 2013, it has remained above $30 billion every year with the exception of COVID-plagued 2020, when foreign investment was $28.21 billion.
FDI was $31.82 billion in 2021 and $36.3 billion in 2022. In the first nine months of this year, FDI was $32.92 billion, according to preliminary data.
Which countries are the biggest investors in Mexico?
Just over two-fifths of the total FDI in Mexico in the first nine months of the year — 41% or $13.5 billion — came from the United States.
Spain ranked second, investing $3.7 billion or 11% of the FDI total in Mexico between January and September.
The top 10 countries of origin for FDI in Mexico in 2023. (SE)
Ranking third to tenth for FDI in Mexico in the first three quarters of 2023 were:
Germany, $2.8 billion, 9% of the FDI total.
Argentina, $2.5 billion, 7%
Japan, $2.4 billion, 7%
Canada, $2.2 billion, 7%
United Kingdom, $1 billion, 3%
Netherlands, $600 million, 2%
France, $500 million, 1.5%
Switzerland, $500 million, 1.5%
Which industries currently receive the most FDI?
Over half of the FDI in the first nine months of 2023 — $17.5 billion or 53% — went to the manufacturing sector. Within that broad industry, 44% of investment went to the transport equipment sector, which includes automakers.
The remaining 56% of the $17.5 billion investment in manufacturing went to the following sectors: metal (14%); beverages and tobacco (13%); chemicals (8%); computer equipment (5%); energy generation equipment (5%); plastic and rubber (3%); food (3%); machinery (1%); other manufacturing industries (4%).
The financial services industry was the second largest recipient of FDI, attracting $7.2 billion or 22% of the total between January and September.
The mining industry ranked third, receiving $2.9 billion or 9% of total FDI, followed by the following sectors:
Temporary accommodation (hotels, Airbnb, etc.), $2.2 billion, or 7% of the total
Transport, $1.3 billion, 4%
Construction, $759 million, 2%
Wholesale retail, $582 million, 2%
The correlation between FDI and export data
As a significant portion of FDI goes to Mexico’s manufacturing sector, it makes sense that exports would increase as more investment flows into the country.
The value of exports increased 220% between 1993 and 2000, while FDI rose by a not overly dissimilar 272%. The data suggests that the increase in FDI – in addition to NAFTA –was a factor in Mexico’s improved export performance.
Between 2000 and 2022, the value of exports rose 248% while FDI increased by just under 100%.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies ([email protected])
