The discount will likely be a welcome financial respite for residents of northern states this year, where 40 C–45 C weather during a heatwave had air-conditioners running nonstop. (Carlos Lindner/Unsplash)
If you’re worried that higher-than-normal use of your airconditioner during the recent heat wave will result in a higher electricity bill, don’t be — every summer, the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) subsidizes electricity in 20 states where the average temperatures surpass 30 degrees Celsius (86 F).
Known as the “summer rate,” the CFE allows residents of the hottest states in the country to access a lower electricity rate during the summer months.
Mexico’s recent heatwave had the country trying its hardest to cool down. Even in traditionally cooler states, such as Mexico City, the heat was punishing. But the federal entity doesn’t qualify for the discount. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)
The CFE defines the summer period as May to October and the rate can apply for the entirety of the summer, depending on weather conditions — consult directly with CFE to find out which months are covered by the subsidy where you live.
This rate is only applicable to households.
To apply for the subsidy, the electricity connection must be individual in each home.The CFE applies the discount directly, so there’s no need to request it.
Residents of Nuevo León, Sonora, Coahuila, Baja California, Chihuahua, Tamaulipas, Sinaloa, Nayarit, Colima, San Luis Potosí, Oaxaca, Morelos, Guerrero, Veracruz, Chiapas, Tabasco, Campeche y Yucatán are all eligible for the special rate.
The CFE’s summer rate will come as a relief to many after this year’s electricity price increase of 7.1%. Since January, users with a domestic rate pay 0.945 pesos (US $0.05) for the first 75 kilowatt hours (KWh) of consumption, up from 0.882 pesos last year.
The increase in price came after the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) lifted subsidized prices established in 2021 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The domestic rate will increase to $1.011 pesos at the end of 2023, according to the CFE.
Workers enrolled with IMSS saw a 5.8% real-terms payrise in June, one of the largest on record. (Twitter)
The Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS) reported the highest salary increase in 21 years in June, although job creation during the month was sluggish.
Employees registered with IMSS earned an average salary of 534.1 pesos (US $30.89) per day in June, equivalent to a monthly salary of 16,245 pesos (US $939.26). This represented an 11.2% increase from last year, or 5.8% in real terms.
Pay has once again increased, says IMSS, and is now at an average of 534.1 pesos per day, or US $30.89. (IMSS)
“Considering an annual inflation of 5.18% in the period (according to data from the first half of June), the real increase in the average base salary was 5.78%, the highest real-term growth since February 2002,” reported an analysis by the Mexican financial firm Banco Base.
Wage increases have been a trend throughout President López Obrador’s administration, in which nominal annual increases of 6% or more have been seen every month since January 2019.
Carlos Ramírez, a consultant for Integralia, explained to El Financiero newspaper that this wage growth is due to a combination of rising minimum wages, high inflation and a tight labor market.
“Companies are having to pay more to retain or attract people,” he said.
Wage growth has been a consistent theme of President López Obrador’s government. He has said he would like to see the minimum wage reach 260 pesos by the end of his term in 2024. (Gob. de México)
President López Obrador has made raising the minimum wage a priority of his administration. It was just 88 pesos per day when he took office in 2018 and is nowup to 207.44 pesos (US $11.99) in most of the country.
AMLO has said he wants it to reach 260 pesos (US $15.03) by the time he leaves office in 2024, despite some economists’ fears that the increases may be fueling inflation.
Although the wage increases reported by the IMSS are encouraging, job creation last month was below average. The IMSS reported that 24,398 new positions were created in June, well below the 42,618 created the previous month, and below the 10-year June average of 29,000. Over the first six months of the year, however, 514,411 jobs were created – the second highest figure on record.
“Traditionally the month of June has weak job creation,” Ramírez told El Financiero. “I do not see anything to worry about; traditionally there is some volatility.”
Mónica Flores, president of ManpowerGroup LATAM, agreed that job creation tends to be slow in the second quarter of the year. Manpower forecasts that Mexico will create between 250,000 and 300,000 jobs between July and September.
Economic sectors with the largest job growth are currently the construction, transport and communications, and commerce sectors. ManpowerGroup LATAM also predicts strong growth over the next quarter in health and life sciences, transport, logistics and automotive and the manufacturing sector.
Police guarding the perimeter near the Bellas Artes station where the slaying occurred. (Rogelio Morales Ponce/Cuartoscuro)
Two people have been arrested in connection with a fatal shooting in a downtown station of the Mexico City Metro, President López Obrador said Thursday.
A man was shot and killed Wednesday night as he descended the stairs of the Bellas Artes station, the Mexico City Security Ministry (SSC) said.
The Bellas Artes station, located in the capital’s historic center, moves an average of 50,000 Metro riders per day.
The SSC said that two men had been following the victim before he entered the subway station. The victim, estimated by authorities to be around 45 years of age, was reportedly shot in the chest, leg and arm.
López Obrador told reporters at his Thursday morning press conference that the motive of the attack was robbery.
“The culprits were detained yesterday, and the motive is now known. It was robbery, 15,000 pesos [US $870],” he said.
López Obrador said that the case was spoken about at his early morning security meeting, and described the incident as “regrettable.”
Another homicide occurred in the Historic Center the same day, near the Pino Suárez Metro station. A shooting there left one man dead and another wounded. (Rogelio Morales Ponce/Cuartoscuro)
National Guard personnel were deployed to provide security in Mexico City Metro stations in January after a series of unusual events sparked alarm among authorities. The vast majority of the more than 6,000 guardsmen and guardswomen deployed have since been withdrawn.
The SSC reported a second homicide in Mexico City’s historic center on Wednesday night. Two men were arrested in connection with a shooting that left one man dead and another wounded, the ministry said. That crime occurred on the street in the vicinity of the Pino Suárez Metro station.
There were 365 homicides in Mexico City in the first five months of 2023, according to federal government data. Among Mexico’s 32 federal entities, the capital was the 15th most violent in the five-month period, a ranking based on its total number of murders.
The peso had just reached a landmark rate of 16.98 pesos to the U.S. dollar on Wednesday. (Shutterstock)
The Mexican peso weakened on Thursday morning after hitting its best level against the U.S. dollar in almost eight years on Wednesday.
One U.S. dollar was worth 17.30 pesos at 12 p.m. Mexico City time, according to Bloomberg.
The report on U.S. salaries, issued by the ADP Research Institute, showed that June’s figures were the best since February 2022. The peso weakened only a few hours later. (Christina Wocintechchat/Unsplash)
The USD-MXN exchange rate dipped to a low of 16.98 on Wednesday, but the greenback subsequently strengthened slightly to close at 17.01 pesos.
Data published Thursday that showed that private payrolls in the United States increased 497,000 in June was cited as a factor that strengthened the dollar and thus weakened the peso this morning. The positive jobs data, published by ADP Research Institute, was the best result since February 2022.
“The peso depreciates today due to the strength of the dollar,” Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Banco Base, wrote on Twitter.
“The employment data from ADP was very good and creates speculation about more interest rate increases in the United States,” she said.
Gabriela Siller of Banco Base said the positive employment data from ADP has created speculation about more interest rate increases by the U.S. Federal Reserve.
CI Banco analysts said that the peso was facing pressure from the “hawkish tone” of the Fed’s minutes from its June monetary policy meeting, which were released Wednesday, as well as the ADP job data.
The United States Federal Reserve will make its next interest rate decision on July 26. The federal funds rate in the U.S. is currently set at a range of 5% to 5.25%.
Analysts cite the Bank of Mexico’s high benchmark interest rate – currently 11.25% – and the significant difference between that rate and that of the Fed as one factor in the current strength of the peso.
Mexico’s currency has appreciated significantly this year after starting 2023 at about 19.5 to the U.S. dollar.
A recovery crew stands in front of the wreckage of a bus that crashed into a ravine in Oaxaca in the early hours of July 5. (Cuartoscuro.com)
A bus crash on Wednesday in the mountainous Mixteca region of Oaxaca left a death toll of 29 people, state authorities said.
A passenger bus veered off the road and plummeted into a 25-meter-deep ravine in the municipality of Magdalena Peñasco, located in the northwest of the southern state.
Survivors, many seriously injured, were transported to a nearby hospital. (Cuartoscuro.com)
A 1 1/2-year-old infant was among those who lost their lives.
Oaxaca Interior Minister Jesús Romero López initially reported a death toll of 27, but his office subsequently said that the figure had risen to 29 after two people died in hospital from their injuries.
Close to 20 people were also injured in the accident, which occurred shortly after 6 a.m. Wednesday. Emergency services personnel took many of the injured to a public hospital in Tlaxiaco, a town about 20 kilometers from Magdalena Peñasco.
The bus departed from Mexico City and had planned to stop in various villages in the largely indigenous Mixteca region. Romero said in a television interview that it appeared that “a lack of skill and tiredness” caused the accident.
Lamentamos profundamente el accidente ocurrido en Magdalena Peñasco. Ya se encuentra personal de nuestro gobierno trabajando en las acciones de rescate y brindando todo el apoyo a las personas heridas. Enviamos un abrazo y nuestro pésame a las familias de las personas fallecidas,…
In a Twitter post, Oaxaca Governor Salomón Jara Cruz sent his condolences to the families of the deceased and pledged the state government’s full support in the wake of their “terrible loss.”
Currency exchange rates are difficult to predict, but there are some important indicators to keep an eye on. (Depositphotos)
On Wednesday, we saw the Mexican Peso punch below 17 for the first time in eight years, and early on Thursday, a sudden weakening of 2%.
It is said that trying to predict future currency exchange rates is a fool’s game, and in my 25 years of international business experience, I have witnessed countless fools attempt it. Predicting forward foreign exchange (FX) rates is never straightforward.
The most logical financial rationale for a given currency’s trajectory can turn out to be completely wrong based on global political or macroeconomic developments that have little to do specifically with that country. However, there are predictable factors that go into currency movements that can be analyzed and followed.
In this brief summary, I will explain why the Mexican peso has strengthened against the dollar, and more importantly, what to watch to see where it is going next. Note this is not a prediction as to the peso’s value in the short term, and changes can happen suddenly depending on new economic or political developments.
To begin with, there are underlying factors supporting a generally strong Mexican peso such as relatively low debt ratios, strong inflows of dollars from remittances, tourism and foreign direct investment, stable to decreasing inflation, and the nearshoring trend. All of these factors are indeed relevant in understanding the strength of the Mexican peso today.
But does that explain why we are seeing such quick and significant strengthening? Not entirely. Another very important equation to look at is the following: What are the current interest rates in Mexico? What is the current (and trending) inflation rate? What is the spread (the difference) between those two rates? And how does that spread compare to the spread in the United States? Let me illustrate with current figures:
Mexico’s current interest rate is 11.25%.
Mexico’s current inflation rate is around 5% and trending down.
The spread between those two rates is over 5%.
The current Federal Reserve interest rate in the U.S. is around 5%.
The current inflation rate in the U.S. is around 5% and trending down.
Assuming the risk of investing in both countries is the same (which it is not), you could make over 5% above interest on your money in Mexico right now. You could make essentially 0% above interest on your money in the United States right now. Historically, the argument for the difference is that a “risk premium” is needed to invest in countries like Mexico. While true, the underlying factors supporting the Mexican economy, as mentioned above, are very strong right now. In addition, the current spread between interest rates and inflation rate in Mexico is so high, it is making the peso very attractive at the moment.
To understand where things could go from here, keep an eye on interest rates, inflation rates, and the spread between the two rates in both countries. Early on Thursday, the sharp weakening in the Mexican peso was caused in large part by the better than expected numbers in U.S. private sector job creation. This caused investors to expect additional interest rate increases in the U.S., despite an inflation rate that is trending down. This would increase the spread in the U.S. and make it generally more attractive to invest in US dollars versus the Mexican peso.
I would be surprised if this analysis has not given you a headache by this point! Despite all of the noise around the recent currency movements, we can try to see where they are going next by being careful observers of the economic indicators I outline above. Of course, global macroeconomic and political news is just as important to follow to understand the whole picture.
Mexico sent a second team of firefighters to Canada on Wednesday to help combat the wildfires currently blazing through Canada’s forests.
The group of 100 firefighters and two technicians traveled from Guadalajara, Jalisco, via Vancouver to the Prince George area of British Columbia, a province in western Canada. They were sent in response to a request for international support from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC).
Wildfires have been blazing from as far west as British Columbia to as far east as Quebec, which has prompted calls from Canadian authorities to seek help from firefighting forces around the world. (File photo/Canadian Forces)
“On instructions from President Andrés Manual López Obrador, who recognizes the complex situation that Canada is going through in the face of forest fires in that country, and building on a solid foundation of bilateral cooperation, Mexico responded positively to a new request,” the Foreign Affairs Ministry (SRE) saidin a statement on Wednesday.
The statement stressed that the firefighters have “the experience, physical fitness and training required to stay in the field for the period that is necessary, adhering to international standards to execute the tasks of control and extinction of forest fires.”
This is the second contingent of Mexican firefighters sent to Canada this year. The first group of 200 traveled to Ontario, in eastern Canada, on June 19. They are currently deployed in the areas of Dryden and Sudbury, where they are installing water pumping systems, tracking hotspots, opening fire breaches and directly fighting the flames.
Mexico’s support for Canada is part of the Operational Plan for the Exchange of Resources for Forest Fire Management between Canadian and Mexican participants, ratified this year. It also adheres to commitments made in the Working Group on Forests of the Mexico-Canada Partnership and in the protocols for addressing the effects of climate change in the trilateral North American Leaders Summit.
The contingent of 100 firefighters and two technicians waiting in Vancouver’s International Airport for transfer to Ontario pose with a First Nations totem bearing a Mexican flag. (Conafor)
Canada lost more than 3.8 million hectares of forest to wildfires between January and June, more than 15 times the average of the last 10 years.
Meanwhile, Mexico has been gripped by successive heat waves and historically low rainfall. It has also seensporadic forest fires in areas such as Guadalajara, but nothing on the scale of the fires in Canada.
Take your Spanish to the next level by putting it to the test in these 20 different daily scenarios. (Unsplash)
Prior to my move to Mexico City, I spent a decade living in Miami, Florida, where it’s often said that 60% of residents speak only Spanish at home.
Growing up in New Jersey, my school began offering Spanish classes when I turned 12, which I immediately signed up for. I continued studying Spanish through college and spent six months living in Barcelona after graduation. I’ve worked in Cuba, Spain and other Latin American countries.
Why am I telling you this?
Because here I am, nine months into my new Mexican life, still speaking mostly English. So much of my day is in English: my writing, my phone conversations with family, my chats with friends — including the ones from Mexico!
Increase your in-person opportunities to practice Spanish by scheduling language exchanges with a friend, going on dates and visiting cafés that cater to the local crowd. (Unsplash)
A few weeks ago I got fed up. This was not the plan. I want to master this beautiful language once and for all.
And because I haven’t married the Mexican man of my dreams — yet — I decided to start incorporating Spanish into almost everything I do.
In just a few weeks, I’ve noticed a vast improvement. I’ll tell you how I did it.
First things first: you must commit — like you’d commit to anything else: getting healthy, losing weight, improving your relationship, saving a bunch of money so you can finally move to Mexico. It’s crucial, and it’s absolutely doable.
The kicker: all of the following activities must be conducted in Spanish and Spanish only. It doesn’t matter how much you actually understand. What matters is that you hear the pattern, get used to the words and start to get comfortable with the structure.
It might be hard at times, becauselearning a new language is hard.However, if you plan to spend a sizable amount of time in Mexico (and who wouldn’t?) it’s your duty to have a good grasp of the native tongue.
The fun part: I’ve compiled a list of 20 ways to enhance your Spanish speaking and comprehension, none of which involve a classroom; okay, two involve classrooms, just not in the traditional sense.
Remember: linguistic embarrassment is part of learning the language. (Archive)
1. The first language you hear and speak in the morning should be Spanish. Even if you’re talking to your cat. Or listening to Pedro Infante. Or counting while doing your morning stretches. Which brings me to number two.
2. Take fitness classes. Review body parts, command verbs and other class-related vocabulary before you go. I notice that taking classes first thing in the morning sets my brain to Spanish mode.
3. Meditate. Use an app and choose only those guided in Spanish. You’re an afternoon meditator, you say? Then…
4. Spend 10 to 30 minutes (or more!) listening to a podcast or audiobook. I like to slow mine down to a speed of .08 to give my mind a chance to grasp the words. The key here is to choose a topic that you find interesting! If you don’t care about AMLO in English, you’re not going to care about him in Spanish either. If you prefer visual entertainment…
5. Go to a Spanish-language movie. Or go to a foreign-language movie with Spanish subtitles. In the theater. With popcorn. Make it memorable.
Watching movies in Spanish, especially without the help of subtitles, is one way to improve your listening and comprehension. (Wikimedia Commons)
6. Watch Spanish language series with Spanish subtitles on your preferred streaming service. You’ll get used to the melody and probably gain some very valuable insight into the culture.
7. Sign up for local tours of your city or the surrounding towns. Excellent for reinforcing past tense and getting attuned to the fascinating history of this incredible country.
8. Take a cooking class. Find out what the menu will be, and study the names of ingredients, utensils and actions you might encounter, like stir, shake, chop, mince, etc. The culinary benefits are obvious, and deciphering Mexican menus will suddenly be that much easier.
9. Attend an author talk. If you can’t read the book first, read a summary so you have an idea of the subject matter. If you’re really ready to put yourself in the hot seat, prepare a question or two. The audience always gets the chance to pick the author’s brain.
10. Visit a museum. Get the audio set in Spanish or read only the Spanish side of the labels.
You can still find newspaper stands in most Mexican cities, making it easier to find and read a variety of national publications. (Margarito Pérez Retana/Cuartoscuro)
11. Read Mexican newspapers. You can buy one for just a few pesos or find free editions on the street. Commiting to a few articles a day is hugely helpful for vocabulary, sentence structure and conversation material for your next dinner party.
12. Choose to live in a neighborhood that isn’t full of expats. Now this is certainly easier said than done. Not everyone has the ability to up and move. If you’re stuck for the foreseeable future with English-speaking neighbors…
13. Choose to spend your time working, shopping or sipping coffee in a neighborhood that isn’t full of expats. So if you’re living in Mexico City like me, I do not want to catch you at a cafe in Condesa. And you won’t because I refuse to go.
14. Listen to music in Spanish. Read the lyrics while you listen. It’s a great way to understand verb tenses and colloquial vocabulary. If you listen to Luis Miguel or José José or Alejandro Fernández, you’ll also be gaining valuable skills in romance.
15. Change the language on your phone to Spanish. This is how I learned how to say “copy/paste” — invaluable information.
Look for a barrio that has a tortillería and other family-owned tiendas, all great places to practice your Spanish with your neighbors. (Wikimedia Commons)
16. Sign up for a language exchange. Someone out there wants to improve their English and is willing to barter and improve your Spanish. You might even make a new friend (if you want one). If you don’t want to be around people in real life…
17. Sign up for the iTalki app (or something similar). It showcases thousands of online tutors offering economical one-on-one lessons, small group classes and free conversation practice. All accessible from your phone.
18. Read children’s books. This is a surprisingly wonderful way to expand your basic vocabulary, epecially useful if you’re beginner to intermediate. Advanced speakers might find this useful as a refresher for those words we know we know but we don’t use enough to remember.
19. Go on dates. If you’re single and you’re cool with apps, choose dates who are willing to speak Spanish with you. That way, even if you don’t want to see them again, you’ll have learned something useful, like how to say “I don’t want to see you again.”
20. Keep practicing. This is the bottom line. No amount of worksheets, group classes, or one-hour-a-week private tutoring sessions are going to make you conversational if you aren’t forcing yourself to be around it as much as possible. And you’re in Mexico, so it isn’t that hard. Make a commitment to yourself and follow through, and you’ll reap the rewards.
Bethany Platanella is a travel and lifestyle writer based in Mexico City. With her company, Active Escapes International, she plans and leads private and small-group active retreats. She loves Mexico’s local markets, Mexican slang, practicing yoga and fresh tortillas. Sign up for her (almost) weekly love letters or follow her Instagram account, @a.e.i.wellness.
Many Mexicans responded positively about the economy compared to last year. Sharon Hahn Darlin/Wikimedia Commons)
Consumer confidence increased to its highest level in more than 1 1/2 years in June, official data shows.
The national statistics agency INEGI reported Wednesday that the consumer confidence index (ICC) rose 0.6 points from May to 45.2.
INEGI reported Wednesday that the consumer confidence index (ICC) rose 0.6 points from May to 45.2, as the Mexican economy continues to have a strong 2023. (Shutterstock)
The month-over-month increase was the highest in five months, while the ICC reached its highest level since November 2021. The annual ICC increase was 2.6 points.
Inegi, in conjunction with the Bank of Mexico, conducted its consumer confidence national survey at 2,336 homes in cities across all 32 federal entities during the first 20 days of June.
It asked respondents about:
Their current economic situation compared to a year earlier.
Their expected economic situation over the next 12 months.
Their opinion about Mexico’s current economic situation compared to 12 months earlier.
Their opinion about Mexico’s expected economic situation over the next 12 months.
Their current capacity to purchase furniture, a television, a washing machine and other home appliances compared to their capacity 12 months earlier.
Responses to the INEGI survey were generally more optimistic than in 2022. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
Their responses — derived from the options of much better, better, the same, worse and much worse with regard to the first four questions, and greater, the same or lesser with respect to the fifth — were weighted and used to formulate the ICC score.
The biggest driver of the month-over-month increase in consumer confidence was an improvement of 1.5 points in the sub-index that measures perceptions about the national economy compared to a year earlier.
Two of the other four sub-indexes also rose compared to May: that which assesses the current capacity of respondents to purchase a home appliance increased by 1 point, and that which measures respondents’ current economic situation jumped 0.5 points.
The sub-index that measures perceptions on Mexico’s expected economic situation during the next 12 months remained unchanged, while that which gauges respondents’ expected economic situation during the same period declined 0.2 points.
The peso has continued a trend of appreciation against the US dollar, reaching a new 8-year high this week. (Mario Jasso/ Cuartoscuro.com)
The only sub-index that declined is paradoxically the only one with a score above 50 — a level which indicates optimism among consumers.
The score for the home appliance sub-index — 28.4 — is well below the other four.
INEGI on Wednesday also reported private consumption data for the month of April.
The Monthly Index on Private Consumption in the Domestic Market increased 0.5% from March and 3.5% annually.
Consumption of Mexican-made goods and domestic services increased 0.3% from March, while consumption of imported products rose by a much high 2.8%. The annual increases were 2.6% and 12.4% respectively.
The bank Banco Base noted in a report that the strength of the peso – the US dollar dipped below 17 pesos on Wednesday morning – has boosted consumption of imported goods due to the greater purchasing power of the Mexican currency.
The new airline will operate from Los Cabos Airport and serve a number of major destinations across Mexico. (Señor Air)
Mexico soon will have a new regional airline.
To be based out of Los Cabos International Airport, Señor Air is aiming to offer a luxurious flying experience to major destinations across Mexico.
The airline announced its upcoming opening in a post on social media but did not provide a date when it would begin operations. (Señor Air)
“We’re introducing Señor Air, the new regional airline that offers a first-class service, with personalized attention and details that make the difference,” the company announced on Instagram.
But don’t pack your swim trunks and flippers just yet. Although Señor Air has a live website showing destinations, it’s not yet selling any tickets — although it says that’s coming soon — and it currently has a single Embraer ERJ135 aircraft with 37-passenger capacity.
But the nascent airline has ambitions of connecting Los Cabos with the cities of Guadalajara, Los Mochis, Mexico City, Mazatlán and Puerto Vallarta, offering economy, economy-plus and priority-class tickets, as well as pet travel carrier services, escort services for minors and transfers on ground with the transportation company Cabo Cardinal.
All of these are mentioned as impending on the company’s website.
Executives from the carrier say Señor Air will generate an economic benefit for the region as well as new direct and indirect jobs. And will also eventually connect Mexico’s northwest with the Felipe Ángeles Airport in Mexico City (AIFA).
Volaris is currently the only airline that connects AIFA with the northwest of Mexico, flying to Mexicali, Tijuana and La Paz.
