Uber Shuttle allows users to share vans or buses to specific points such as work areas, universities or airports, without the typical dynamic-demand pricing scheme. (Uber)
Uber Shuttle, Uber’s transportation service in vans or buses with fixed routes and schedules at a lower price than its traditional services, has launched in Mexico City ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The service, which briefly operated in Mexico City in 2024, offering trips to concerts, has been reintroduced in time for the international soccer tournament. Currently, it operates rides to and from Santa Fe, an upscale neighborhood in westernmost Mexico City.
Uber Shuttle’s nascent Mexico City service is starting off with rides to and from Santa Fe, but its vans and buses are expected to become a familiar part of the city scene as millions of World Cup visitors start arriving. (@FinanzasMx_/X)
“We’ve been testing this product and making sure it works really well before introducing it into an environment that will have a large influx of people,” Uber’s global Vice President of Mobility Pradeep Parameswaran told El CEO magazine.
Uber Shuttle allows users to share vans or buses to specific points such as work areas, universities or airports, without the typical dynamic-demand pricing scheme. It operates over fixed routes between specific points and with pre-established schedules, thereby offering a more accessible and predictable alternative for multi-passenger transport, especially during peak hours and large events.
The new service also advertises itself as a safer alternative to traditional bus transportation, as it features a security PIN, which consists of a four-digit code to confirm that passengers board the correct vehicle. This feature is also available in Uber’s car-based services in Mexico.
Uber’s strategy ahead of the FIFA World Cup also includes dialogue sessions with local and federal authorities to define the operation of its drivers at the Mexico City International Airport (AICM), where the capital’s government also plans to operate its own taxi app.
Earlier this year, Mexico City Mayor Clara Brugada announced the development of a mobile application dubbed Taxi CDMX, meant to modernize taxi services ahead of the sporting event.
Parameswaran said that Uber does not consider the Taxi CDMX app a risk or a threat; rather, it sees it as another step toward strengthening urban mobility.
“We firmly believe that Uber and taxis must collaborate to guarantee better services,” he said. Further information about Taxi CDMX is forthcoming.
In Mexico, Uber has more than 300,000 registered drivers, and its users number around 25 million annually. However, the FIFA World Cup, which will take place in June and July, will increase those numbers as some 5 million visitors are expected to arrive in the country for the 13 matches that will be played in Mexico.
According to reports, the train traveled at excessive speed during a period of over an hour before it derailed. It is unknown whether the driver — who was arrested on Monday — was properly alerted to his speed or whether the train had any speed control mechanisms. (Carolina Jiménez Mariscal/Cuartoscuro)
Excessive speed was the cause of the Interoceanic Train crash that claimed 14 lives in southern Mexico in late 2025, Attorney General Ernestina Godoy said Tuesday.
In a video message, Godoy said that when the train crashed, it was traveling at 65 kilometers per hour (km/h) on a curve where the maximum “authorized speed” is 50 km/h.
She said that the speed the train was traveling when it derailed in the state of Oaxaca on Dec. 28 was determined via information obtained from the black box, which was located in one of the train’s two locomotives.
In addition to the 14 fatalities, almost 100 people were injured in the crash, which occurred near the small Oaxaca town of Nizanda.
The driver of the train was arrested in Palenque, Chiapas, on Monday. He faces charges of culpable homicide and causing injuries due to his allegedly negligent driving.
Godoy said that the train was inspected after the accident and no defects that could have placed its operation at risk were found.
On stretches of railroad that the train passed before the accident occurred, it “reduced its speed, which allowed us to know that the braking system was working properly,” she said.
Godoy also said that no damage was found on the tracks.
She noted that a range of experts across fields, including topography, mechanical and electrical engineering, telecommunications and “industrial safety” contributed to the investigation carried out by the Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR).
The attorney general said that investigations will continue to determine whether any other factors contributed to the accident, but as things stand, excessive speed has been established as the sole cause.
The train traveled at excessive speed during a period of more than 1 hour before the accident occurred
The Interoceanic Train was traveling across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec from Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, to Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, when the accident occurred.
Citing information obtained from the black box, Godoy said that the train, prior to the derailment, reached speeds of 111 km/h on straight stretches of railroad, 41 km/h above the “authorized limit.”
She said that the train rounded the six curves before the accident location at a speed of 52 km/h, slightly above the authorized limit.
Godoy stressed that “speeding on a train is much more dangerous than in a conventional vehicle” due to a train’s weight and mass as well as the radius of the curves it passes through. Consequently, she said, the “centrifugal force increases — that is the force that pushes the vehicle away from its center of rotation, which causes it to leave the tracks and overturn.”
The train that crashed on Dec. 28 — made up of two locomotives and four passenger cars — weighed approximately 400 tonnes and was transporting around 250 people.
The train rounded the six curves above the speed limit before derailing near Nizanda, Oaxaca. (Especial/Cuartoscuro)
Citing the investigation carried out by the FGR, the newspaper Reforma reported that the train traveled at excessive speed during a period of over an hour, but the driver wasn’t warned about his speeding or “stopped.”
“… Godoy didn’t say why, on the route [the train] covered before the accident — where there were two stops at stations — no alert or automated system was activated to make [the driver] reduce his speed,” Reforma wrote.
Carlos Barreda, a railroad expert, told Reforma that the trains that run on the interoceanic route have speed alert systems and speed control mechanisms. However, he questioned whether they were working.
The previous federal government modernized the railroad across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec as part of an ambitious trade corridor project. Former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador inaugurated the line in late 2023.
“Authorities, kings, politicians and rulers have been dreaming” about connecting the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico for “centuries,” he said at the time.
Cargo unloaded at the ports in Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos can be transported across the isthmus by freight trains before being reloaded onto a ship to complete its journey to its final destination.
“It’s an exceptional project — it provides an alternative to the Panama Canal,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said in March 2025, referring to the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, which includes the modernized railroad between Salina Cruz and Coatzacoalcos.
Once open for business, the 80-hectare "Perfect Day" water park could attract 21,000 cruise ship tourists per day, and employ some 2,500 people for the park’s operation. (Royal Caribbean)
A court in Quintana Roo state ordered a provisional suspension of works by Royal Caribbean on its “Perfect Day” tourism project in Mahahual on Monday, while the potential environmental implications of the project are being assessed.
The injunction was requested by the civil society organization Defending the Right to a Healthy Environment (DMAS). The group argues that there are irregularities in the authorization of land-use changes provided to the Royal Caribbean cruise line.
DMAS stressed that it is not against the proposed water park but that “we are in favor of respecting the law, urban planning, and the community’s right to a healthy environment.”
Royal Caribbean first presented “Perfect Day” to a group of journalists in October, during which the U.S. firm’s director of innovation, Jay Schneider, said the project is expected to attract up to 6 million tourists a year and transform the fishing village of Mahahual into a stronghold for the American cruise line.
The proposed 80-hectare water park is set to be developed across from the Mahahual cruise ship pier in southern Quintana Roo. The initial plan outlines an operational capacity of up to 21,000 cruise ship tourists per day, as well as 2,500 employees for the park’s operation.
Activists have long raised concerns about the project, saying that the park will worsen infrastructure woes in the 2,600-person town, which is already battling wastewater problems.
On Monday, a federal judge called for a halt to operations on environmental grounds, as the project could damage mangroves, put pressure on water rights and harm existing infrastructure due to its scale.
Developers will not be permitted to work on the project while the injunction is being resolved.
A hearing to assess the possibility of a definitive suspension is expected to be held in the coming days.
When questioned about the potential impact of the project on the mangroves, Schneider said, “We are not going to touch anything in the mangrove conservation area.”
He went on to suggest that the mangroves are already being damaged by pollution associated with the municipal wastewater treatment plant and that Royal Caribbean aimed to restore the mangroves, as well as construct a new wastewater treatment plant for the community.
A series of public works will bring improvements to city streets in San Miguel de Allende. (Jezael Melgoza/Unsplash)
About 300 million pesos (US $17.4 million) in combined municipal and federal government funds will be spent on public works this year in San Miguel de Allende, including two major local projects that Mayor Mauricio Trejo Pureco said will have important impacts.
Public works in San Miguel de Allende
The first project will renovate the exit to Celaya (Salida a Celaya) by fixing the asphalt, widening the sidewalks and adding planters, Trejo said. The other project will improve the corridor along the José Manuel Zavala bypass in the Olimpo area with sports, recreational and community spaces.
Improvements to the Celaya exit are among many public works set to take place in San Miguel de Allende. (Cathy Siegner)
The city has budgeted an additional 210 million pesos (US $12 million) for security expenditures. The mayor said that money will go toward training, technology, tools and uniforms.
No specific timelines for the two public works projects were announced, but Trejo said they will be completed in phases. The goal is to complete them by the end of his current three-year term in October 2027.
Garbage collection changes cause consternation
Bags of garbage were piling up on street corners in several San Miguel neighborhoods over the Jan. 24-25 weekend, sparking confusion and complaints about changes that kicked in after the Tecmed garbage collection concessionended on Jan. 20.
Following the city council’s adoption last fall of an amendment guaranteeing “permanent garbage collection service,” the municipal governmentannounced on Jan. 21 the various days and times that garbage would be collected on 22 different routes across San Miguel.
However, according to comments posted Jan. 22-24 on the city’s Facebook page, the new schedule hadn’t been followed, and there was “garbage everywhere.” Commenters said there had been no garbage pickup at that point in the neighborhoods of San Antonio, San Rafael, El Nigromante, Santa Julia, Itzquinapan and Insurgentes.
The city also announced on Jan. 21 that the big garbage containers that had long been located on Calzada de la Luz between Calle De Volanteros and Calle Hernández Macias had been removed.
Garbage was piling up everywhere in some San Miguel de Allende neighbourhoods recently. (Cathy Siegner)
The announcement said that waste would be received directly at that location between 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., Monday through Sunday, but that garbage from those who collect waste from businesses would not be accepted there.
Project diverts organic waste from San Miguel’s landfill
An effort to divert some of the estimated 60 tons of organic waste sent each day to the landfill north of San Miguel has signed up 700 people so far, according toComposta SMA, a group that comes to subscribers’ homes each week to collect organic waste.
The program has kept 600,000 pounds of organic waste out of the Relleno Sanitario San Miguel landfill and turned it into compost, Composta SMA said. The compost is then returned to program subscribers and farms or is donated to reforestation efforts to restore landscapes and ecosystems.
Composta SMA said that 3,000 people living in the Palo Colorado area near the landfill have to deal with infections, odors and pollution problems, and that the situation isn’t fair.
“If we take organic waste out of the garbage equation, we will automatically give the people there dignified living conditions,” the group said.
Local immigration office relocated
The San Miguel office of the Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM) has relocated as of Jan. 2 to a building past the bus station on the way to Cieneguita. The building has no address number, but it’s on Carretera San Miguel de Allende–La Cieneguita, Km. 2.4, in Comunidad Los López.
The new location for San Miguel de Allende’s immigration office (left). (Sonia Diaz)
Those needing to complete immigration processes there will likely have to drive or take a taxi since it’s about 25 minutes from the city center.
Theposted hours for the San Miguel INM office are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The telephone numbers are +52 (415) 152-6939, +52 (415) 152-8991 and +52 (152) 152-8985.
Cathy Siegner is an independent journalist based in San Miguel and Montana. She has journalism degrees from the University of Oregon and Northwestern University.
From tourism growth to beach protests and more, January has been a busy month in Puerto Vallarta. (Visit Puerto Vallarta)
In Puerto Vallarta, a mix of civic activism, economic expansion and infrastructure policy shifts is shaping early 2026 in the Bay of Banderas, with community groups, businesses and government authorities all in the spotlight.
Protest demands public beach access
Residents of Mismaloya, local tourism operators and environmentalists recently staged a blockade of Federal Highway 200, near the iconic beach zone of Los Arcos de Mismaloya. Protesters demanded unfettered public access to the shoreline after a private company installed fencing and signage on the federal coastal zone. Protesters cited constitutional protections guaranteeing free beach access and called for greater legal clarity on the status of the area.
Protesters near Puerto Vallarta make clear their dissatisfaction with being blocked from beach access. (Instagram)
Puerto Vallarta City Council member Melissa Madero joined the demonstrators and helped broker an end to the temporary road closure, with promises from the municipal government to engage in dialogue and pursue a formal petition to federal environmental authorities, including the Environment and Natural Resources Ministry (SEMARNAT), for transparency and protection measures.
The petition demands an official stance from city hall, publication of historical land records tied to the site and a ban on future private concessions or construction in the federal coastal zone.
In parallel, the Puerto Vallarta City Council has also pushed forward a separate initiative urging SEMARNAT to elevate Los Arcos’ legal status to that of a federally protected natural area (ANP), a move local officials say would safeguard marine ecosystems and shore access against future development pressures.
City’s tourism numbers remain strong
The protests come as the broader tourism sector continues to show resilience. Local and state tourism data indicate that Puerto Vallarta has maintained robust visitor arrivals through 2025, with significant international and domestic traffic boosting economic activity across hotels, restaurants and tour services.
Cruise tourism in particular has seen notable growth in recent years, with hundreds of thousands of passengers arriving by sea, underlining Puerto Vallarta’s importance as a regional gateway. Puerto Vallarta consistently lands among Mexico’s top five most-visited cruise ports. Between January and December 2025, it received 453,198 cruise passengers on 143 ships.
Puerto Vallarta supports the fishing sector
Amid these developments, city leadership has also signaled support for the local fishing sector, approving 300,000 pesos in targeted funding aimed at bolstering small-scale commercial fishing operations and sustaining traditional livelihoods integral to the Bay of Banderas’ coastal economy.
2025 was a banner year for the cruise ship industry in Puerto Vallarta. (Visit Puerto Vallarta)
Officials say the investment reflects a broader commitment to balancing tourism growth with community economic needs.
Fishing communities and environmental advocates nationally have highlighted the importance of sustainable fisheries management as Mexico faces mounting pressures on its marine resources, underscoring why local backing of fishing interests carries both economic and cultural weight.
Transition to electronic toll passes begins
On the transportation front, a major shift in how drivers pay for highway use is underway across Mexico. Starting this month, the federal toll road system is transitioning toward an electronic tag requirement at many plazas operated by Federal Roads and Bridges and Related Services (CAPUFE) and others, reducing the availability of cash-payment lanes and encouraging motorists to obtain a compatible toll pass instead.
This change is part of a broader effort to streamline traffic flow and modernize Mexico’s highway operations, but it has prompted questions for residents and visitors alike who frequently travel between Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara.
Charlotte Smith is a writer and journalist based in Mexico. Her work focuses on travel, politics and community.
The circumstances of the arrest of alleged drug boss Ryan Wedding were again the topic of discussion at the president's morning press conference, as U.S. authorities contradict Sheinbaum's version of events. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro)
The Mexican government says that Wedding, a Canadian citizen, turned himself in at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City late last week, but the suspect’s lawyer said Monday that his client didn’t surrender.
“He was apprehended,” said Anthony Colombo, who suggested that the U.S. government executed the capture.
For his part, FBI Director Kash Patel told Vanity Fair that Wedding — who is now in U.S. custody — was detained as the result of a “complex, high-stakes operation with zero margin for error,” in which both Mexican security personnel and FBI agents were involved.
The circumstances of the arrest are of great interest as U.S. agents in Mexico are legally barred from making arrests, and Sheinbaum has said on repeated occasions that her government will not accept any kind of intervention or unilateral action by U.S. forces in Mexican territory.
Sheinbaum responds to finding that Ryan Wedding photo was created with AI
A reporter noted that a photo posted to Instagram purporting to show Wedding outside the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City was found by a Canadian media outlet (CBC News) to have been generated with artificial intelligence.
On Monday, Sheinbaum said that a post on Instagram by the account “bossryanw” was the “best evidence” in support of the Mexican government’s assertion that Wedding turned himself in at the U.S. Embassy last week.
President Sheinbaum showed a post on Instagram at her Monday presser that CBC News says was artificially generated. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
A message accompanying the aforesaid photo read: “After seeking guarantees for a fair process, I have decided to voluntarily turn myself in to the authorities.”
Sheinbaum claimed that the message came from Wedding himself, although the Instagram account was likely opened by an “imposter,” according to CBC News.
On Tuesday, the president highlighted that there is no label on the photo stating that it was created with AI.
“Every social network has a policy: when there is a photograph or any information from Artificial Intelligence, a video [for example], it has to have the letters ‘IA’ or ‘AI,’ depending on whether it’s in English or Spanish,” Sheinbaum said.
“In this case, there is no indication that it’s artificial intelligence. That’s the first thing,” she said.
“The second thing, … [to allay] any doubt there might be about this, it’s worth putting up the post that the United States ambassador in Mexico made,” Sheinbaum said.
Ambassador Ron Johnson said in a statement last Friday that “the surrender of Ryan Wedding was a direct result of pressure applied by Mexican and U.S. law enforcement working in close coordination and cooperation.”
Sheinbaum noted that Johnson, in a Spanish-language statement, referred to “la entrega voluntaria” (voluntary surrender) of Ryan Wedding.
“I’m not going to get into an argument with the director of the FBI, nor do I want there to be a conflict,” she said.
“What they, the authorities of the United States, told the Mexican authorities is that there had been a voluntary surrender,” Sheinbaum said, adding that said version of events is what is set out in the statement issued by Johnson.
There was no joint operation with US, Sheinbaum reiterates
“We have no reason to doubt either the ambassador or what we were told here in Mexico,” Sheinbaum said.
Referring to Patel’s claim that Wedding was detained in a bilateral operation, the president said that was something that U.S. authorities would have to explain.
However, she stressed that her government doesn’t want to get into a dispute with the Trump administration over the issue.
“We always tell the truth, we have no reason to lie,” Sheinbaum added.
Could the US have carried out a covert unilateral operation to detain Wedding?
A reporter asked Sheinbaum whether her government had ruled out the possibility that the United States carried out a “hidden” operation in Mexico to capture Wedding.
“We don’t believe that this was the case as they have to say what they’re doing here in Mexico,” the president said.
“… We believe the ambassador and the publication of the Embassy,” she said.
“… And remember that the National Security Law clearly establishes that every U.S. agent in Mexico has to deliver a report [about what they’re doing in Mexico], and we are not aware of them having done anything other than what they constantly report to the Mexican authorities,” Sheinbaum said.
On Monday, Wedding’s lawyer, Anthony Colombo, stated:
“Look, the Trump administration with the apprehension of Maduro has made clear that we’re in a bold new era with regard to international relations. So one can understand why that statement [saying that Wedding turned himself in] might have been put out, because if the U.S. government is unilaterally going into a sovereign country and apprehending someone, you can understand the concern that that sovereign entity might have. But he was apprehended.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
Del Toro stepped into the kitchen during the party to assist in the preparation of a dinner menu provided by Holbox. (Deadline/Instagram)
Guillermo del Toro’s three-decade-old debut feature is not scheduled to screen at the Sundance Film Festival until Tuesday night, but the acclaimed Mexican director is already making waves at the annual event.
“Cronos,” a 1992 horror movie filmed in Mexico, will screen tonight at the Ray Theatre in Park City, a city in Utah that hosts the Sundance Film Festival every January.
The film — “regarded by many as an early masterpiece,” according to The Guardian — will screen as part of the “Park City Legacy” program of Sundance, which is said to celebrate “the festival’s rich history … through archival screenings of iconic films from previous editions.”
Ahead of the screening, Netflix hosted a party in honor of del Toro, a 61-year-old Guadalajara native known for films such as “Blade II,” “The Shape of Water,” “Pinocchio” and “Frankenstein,” a 2025 movie nominated for nine Academy Awards, including best picture.
Elijah Wood, an actor best known for “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, the filmmaking duo known as “The Daniels” and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Geeta Gandbhir were among the guests.
Del Toro took center stage at the Sundance shindig, held at a Park City home, and in the process made several nods to his Mexican heritage.
¡Muy mexicano! 🇲🇽
Guillermo del Toro sorprende con mariachi, tortillas y tacos en celebración de #Netflix 🪇🌮
Durante una celebración organizada por Netflix en honor a Guillermo del Toro, el cineasta sorprendió a los asistentes al cantar clásicos rancheros con un grupo de… pic.twitter.com/wPK5ZG6BhJ
Backed by a mariachi band, the Oscar-winning director “delivered nearly a full concert with at least seven songs, even coming back for an encore as the crowd enthusiastically chanted, ‘Uno más,” according to a report by The Hollywood Reporter.
Among the songs he sang were “México Lindo y Querido,” a classic ranchera song, and “La Bamba,” a traditional Mexican folk song that belongs to Veracruz’s son jarocho genre.
Del Toro also stepped into the kitchen during the party to assist in the preparation of a dinner menu provided by Holbox, a Michelin Guide-rated Mexican seafood restaurant in Los Angeles.
Video footage shows the filmmaker using a tortilla press to turn balls of masa (dough) into perfectly formed tortillas, which he later used to prepare tacos.
Cronos at Sundance
A newly restored 4K version of “Cronos” will screen at the Ray Theatre at 8:45 p.m. local time. Del Toro will be in attendance for an extended Q&A session with filmgoers.
The Hollywood Reporter noted that “Cronos” tells the story of an alchemist (in Veracruz) “who creates a device that can give its user eternal life.”
“Four centuries later, the alchemist, now a ghostly white, is killed by debris from a falling building. Enter an unsuspecting antique dealer who comes across the device, only to discover it can restore his youth, even if immortality comes with gruesome consequences,” the publication wrote.
In a review published last year, The Guardian’s film critic Peter Bradshaw wrote that “Cronos” is “a macabre body-horror comedy, perhaps more intriguing than frightening, with a hint of steampunkiness.”
The film, starring Ron Perlman and Federico Luppi, has “a distinctive authorial signature, the work of a very individual film-maker,” Bradshaw wrote.
“Cronos” was filmed in Mexico City over a period of eight weeks in 1992, the newspaper Reforma reported. It cost around US $2 million to make and was partially funded by del Toro himself.
“The film was finished using my credit card, and just as I was paying the last installment, it was declined because I had exceeded my limit, but I didn’t care because we had already finished,” the filmmaker told Reforma.
“I was also on the verge of losing my house because we bet everything we had on this production, but it was worth it because it has been enthusiastically received around the world,” del Toro said.
It is estimated that 40 million tamales are eaten in Mexico on Feb. 2, with most of them purchased at informal establishments such as street stands and local markets. (Cuartoscuro)
Mexicans will spend over one billion pesos on tamales for Feb. 2 in honor of Día de la Candelaria (Candlemas Day), a festivity that marks the end of the Christmas season and which is traditionally celebrated by Mexicans with a feast of tamales.
Based on data from INEGI and the restaurant industry, experts estimate that Mexicans consume around 40 million tamales on Feb. 2, with most purchased from street vendors and local markets.
Día de la Candelaría is a Catholic holiday in Mexico that’s all about the Baby Jesus. That helps the sale of tamales on Feb. 2, as those who found a tiny plastic replica of the infant in their slice of Rosca de Reyes earlier this month must — by tradition — provide the tamales for the festivities. (Gabriela Pérez Montiel/Cuartoscuro)
According to the Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce, Services and Tourism (Concanaco Servytur), in the days leading up to and including Candlemas, 1.2 billion pesos (US $70 million) are spent nationwide on tamales and atole, the sweet, warm corn-dough beverage that often accompanies them.
With an average price of around 25 pesos (US $1.45) a piece, this industry benefits approximately 13,000 businesses dedicated to the production and sale of tamales.
Unlike other high-spending seasons, the economic influx is not directed towards large commercial chains. Rather, it is distributed throughout a network of neighborhood shops, public markets, small restaurants and street stalls, amplifying the “tamal day’s” territorial and social impact.
According to long-standing tradition, those who found the baby Jesus hidden in the Rosca de Reyes on Jan. 6 must pay for the tamales on Feb. 2 (or prepare them themselves). Therefore, the social pressure of procuring the tamales ensures a steady flow of customers over the coming days.
Every region of Mexico has its own varieties of tamales, but the most common ones include chicken tamales, rajas (Poblano chile strips) tamales, sweet tamales and mole tamales.
In Mexico City, the Los Pinos Cultural Complex (the former residence of Mexico’s presidents) will join in the celebration with a culinary event offering over 80 varieties of tamales. The festival, dubbed Encuentro de Sabores Tamaleros, will take place from Jan. 31 to Feb. 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Entrance is free.
Mexico ran a trade deficit for four straight years but a strong December for exports lifted the country into positive trade territory for 2026. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
Preliminary data indicates that Mexico enjoyed a trade surplus of US $2.43 billion in December 2025, a performance that prevented the economy from falling into recession.
The strong December export performance marked a significant improvement from November, when the country’s surplus hit US $663 million.
Conversely, Mexican merchandise imports rose 4.4%, reaching US $664.1 billion, resulting in a trade surplus of US $771 million after four years of deficit. The preliminary data shows that both imports and exports registered record highs.
Though the US $771 million surplus in 2025 is modest, it contrasts sharply with the deficit of US $18.541 billion observed in 2024.
The INEGI report indicated that the increase in the trade surplus between November and December 2025 stemmed from a rise in the non-oil trade surplus. This figure increased from US $2.838 billion in November to US $4.837 billion in December.
At the same time, Mexico experienced a widening of the oil trade deficit — which increased from US $2.175 billion to US $2.408 billion during the same period.
Paradójico que en 2025 el impulso del crecimiento económico de México haya sido el sector exportador.
En 2025, las exportaciones registraron un crecimiento de 7.6%, el mayor desde 2022.
Para 2026 se estima un crecimiento de 4.5%. pic.twitter.com/Dng5poB6we
“Mexico did not fall into recession because exports responded well despite the environment of uncertainty and new tariffs,” Carlos Capistrán Carmona, chief economist for Mexico and Canada at Bank of America (BofA), told Forbes magazine.
The INEGI report showed that exports in December climbed by 17.2% and imports grew by 16.7% as compared to December 2024.
The value of Mexican exports in December 2025 totaled US $60.651 billion. INEGI said this growth resulted from a 19.5% increase in non-oil exports and a 32.9% decrease in oil exports. Within non-oil exports, those destined for the United States increased by 17.9% year-on-year, while those destined for the rest of the world grew by 28%.
Capistrán believes 2026 will provide more of the same.
“The engine of growth will once again be exports, which will grow by more than 5%,” he predicted.
The Baja California Sur state government announced that its tax on tourists has risen from 470 pesos to 488 pesos (US $28).
The new amount, which went into effect on Jan. 1, is compulsory for tourists over 12 years old entering by air or land and who stay more than 24 hours in Baja California Sur destinations, such as Los Cabos, La Paz and Loreto.
The tourist tax funds go in part to preserving the state’s unique environment, such as the city La Paz’s famous desert-meets-sea terrain. (@VisitMex/X)
The tax, part of the government’s “Embrace It” program, was introduced to help secure long-term funding for conservation and community development as international visitor numbers increase. That motive is reflected in the program’s slogan, “Pay for tourism and protect Baja California Sur.”
The funds collected are allocated to environmental protection, tourism infrastructure and social and cultural projects in communities on the peninsula, according to an official statement.
Tourists are provided with a QR code once payment is completed, to show to authorities during their stay, if requested.
During the second half of 2025, 77.1% of tourist tax payments in the state were made by tourists from the United States, 17.5% from Canadian tourists and 5.4% came from visitors from other countries.
The largest contribution was made by tourists aged 45 to 59 years (30.25%), followed by those aged 60 and over (29.94%) and then 30 to 44 (24.52%).
Over the last 20 years, the market for tourism has expanded rapidly in Baja California Sur, thanks to enhanced air connectivity and the opening of elite accommodations by well-known hoteliers. Between January and November 2025, the state hosted 2.2 million international visitors.
Based on visitor numbers, if all international travelers pay the tax, the state could collect over 1 billion pesos ($58 million) in 2026.
