Inflation declined in the first half of July, marked by lower costs for various agricultural products, such as lemons and avocados, giving rise to expectations that the central bank (Banxico) will continue to cut interest rates.
Headline inflation declined more than expected in early July, bringing it back within the central bank’s target range. (Shutterstock)
Annualized inflation surprised to the downside in the first half of July, slowing from 4.13% to 3.55%, below the market consensus of 3.61%. Consumer prices rose 0.15% compared to the previous two weeks, also below expectations of a 0.27% increase.
President Claudia Sheinbaum celebrated the news, saying during her Thursday morning press conference that the slowdown in inflation “indicates that [Banxico] has room to keep cutting interest rates.”
Citing INEGI data, Sheinbaum said the rise in inflation in previous months was primarily due to the increase in the prices of beef, pork, and chicken, whose costs have begun to normalize.
Among the products with the highest price increases during the first two weeks of July were nopales, up 14.44%; air transport, up 11.25% and lettuce and cabbage, up 8.71%.
In the other column, grapes showed an 11.96% decrease in price; papayas fell 5.86% and lemons fell 5.73%.
Banxico, which targets an inflation rate of 3% plus or minus one percentage point, lowered its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points in June — its fourth straight cut of that magnitude. This reduced the policy rate in Latin America’s second-largest economy to 8.0%, the lowest since August 2022.
Brokerage Monex said the data surprised the market as inflation reached its lowest level during the first fortnight of July in a decade. Still, core inflation continues to present challenges.
The closely watched core price index, which measures inflation excluding volatile items like food and energy prices, climbed 0.15% in early July, compared with 0.22% a month earlier.
Rumbo Económico MÉX: En la 1ra. quincena de julio, la inflación general fue de 0.15% q/q, situándose por debajo de la expectativa del mercado de 0.25%. A tasa anual, la inflación general se moderó a 3.55% desde 4.13% previo, alcanzando así su nivel más bajo desde la 2Q de enero. pic.twitter.com/VGTJiv2pE7
The year-to-year core component came in at 4.25%, easing from 4.28% and below expectations (4.31%). Within the core index, goods “registered upward pressure,” according to a Scotiabank report, “rising from 3.97% to 4.01%, while services decelerated from 4.63% to 4.49%.”
At the same time, the non-core rate declined from 3.43% to 1.24%, fueled by a sharp decline in fruit and vegetable prices (down 12.24%). This abrupt drop offset a 10.70% increase in livestock products.
In its statement from the June 27 meeting, Banxico said it expects to slow the pace of interest rate cuts. Monex analysts concurred, writing in a report that “Given the stubbornness of core inflation, we expect Banxico to reduce the scale of its cuts.”
Monex and Scotiabank project that the central bank will vote for a 25 basis point rate cut at its Aug. 7 meeting, lowering the benchmark interest rate to 7.75%.
Sheinbaum said she would seek to speak to Trump about the proposed 30% tariff "if it's necessary." (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
At her Thursday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke about her government’s efforts to stave off new U.S. tariffs that are due to take effect next week.
She also spoke about two significant reductions: one in the amount of fentanyl seized by U.S. authorities at the Mexico-U.S. border and another in the prevailing inflation rate in Mexico.
Here is a recap of the president’s July 24 mañanera.
Mexico doing ‘everything’ it can to stop 30% US tariffs from taking effect
Asked about the United States’ proposed 30% tariff on imports from Mexico that is scheduled to take effect on Aug. 1, Sheinbaum said that her government is doing “everything” it can to stop the new duty from entering into force.
“There is a team working in the United States with the [U.S.] commerce secretary and the treasury secretary,” she said.
“We made a series of proposals that have to do with Plan México and also reducing the trade deficit [with the United States], which is one of the concerns of President Trump,” Sheinbaum said.
“The trade deficit can be reduced through different mechanisms that don’t affect the economy of Mexico. So we’ve been making a series of proposals and we’ll present them here [at a later time], hoping that we reach an agreement,” she said.
United States President Donald Trump informed Sheinbaum in a July 11 letter that “starting August 1, 2025, we will charge Mexico a Tariff of 30% on Mexican products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral Tariffs,” which currently apply to steel, aluminum, vehicles and auto parts.
“… Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT, what Mexico has done is, is not enough,” he wrote.
On Thursday, Sheinbaum said she would seek to speak to Trump about the proposed 30% tariff “if it’s necessary.”
“… We’re going to see whether the teams can find an agreement. … We’re confident we can reach a good agreement,” she said.
Sheinbaum touts 50% decline in US fentanyl seizures
Sheinbaum told reporters that the quantity of fentanyl seized by U.S. authorities at the Mexico-U.S. border has declined 50% since she took office last October.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection data shows that 4,367 pounds (1,981 kg) of fentanyl were seized at the Mexico-U.S. border in the first six months of 2025, a 54.7% decrease compared to the same period of last year.
Sheinbaum asserted that the decline in fentanyl seizures at the border — which can be used as a rough proxy to estimate the amount of fentanyl being smuggled into the United States from Mexico — is evidence that more of the synthetic opioid is being seized in Mexico.
That confiscated fentanyl — produced in Mexico by criminal organizations with precursor chemicals imported from China — doesn’t reach the United States, she stressed.
Security Minister Omar García Harfuch reported on Tuesday that around 1.5 tonnes of fentanyl, “and more than 3.5 million fentanyl pills,” have been seized in Mexico since October.
On Thursday, Sheinbaum attributed fentanyl seizures in Mexico during her administration to “the entire security strategy,” which includes a greater emphasis on the use of intelligence and investigation to combat crime.
Claudia Sheinbaum dijo que desde octubre de 2024 a la fecha se ha reducido un 50% el tráfico de fentanilo a Estados Unidos. Algo reconocido por las instituciones de ese país.
She stressed that authorities are also cracking down on methamphetamine, which is also produced by criminal groups in clandestine labs.
García Harfuch said on Tuesday that authorities have dismantled 1,193 clandestine drug labs since the government took office in October.
Sheinbaum highlighted that figure on Thursday, and noted that the estimated financial impact on organized crime groups due to drug confiscations, the dismantling of labs and the arrest of suspected criminals during her administration is 43 billion pesos (US $2.3 billion).
“All of this is part of the work we’re doing, and, as we always say, we’re also seeking that, on the other side in the United States, they do their part” to combat the distribution of fentanyl and other drugs, she said.
Sheinbaum highlights ‘significant reduction’ in inflation
A reporter noted that Mexico’s annual headline inflation rate, as reported by national statistics agency INEGI, declined to 3.55% in the first half of July. That rate is within the Bank of Mexico’s tolerated range of 2-4%.
En la primera quincena de julio 2025, el Índice Nacional de Precios al Consumidor #INPC presentó un nivel de 140.731 y representó un aumento de 0.15% respecto a la quincena previa. Con este resultado, la inflación general anual fue de 3.55%.
Sheinbaum first said that beef, pork and chicken prices are “returning to their [normal] price” and helping to ease inflation.
The rate in the first half of the month represents a “significant reduction” in headline inflation, she said.
“It went from 4.13% to 3.55%,” Sheinbaum noted, referring in the first instance to the annual headline rate in the second half of June.
She said that the new inflation data gives the Bank of Mexico the “margin” required to continue lowering its key interest rate.
A continuation of the central bank’s easing cycle “will help us … increase investment” in Mexico, Sheinbaum said.
The Bank of Mexico has cut its key interest rate by 50 basis points after each of its board’s four monetary policy meetings this year. The rate is currently set at 8.0%, its lowest level in nearly three years.
The central bank’s next monetary policy meeting will take place on Aug. 7.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
The suspects hoarded goods such as building materials and forced their victims to buy them at exorbitant prices. (X)
Federal and México state authorities have seized 52 properties and arrested eight people in a sweeping operation targeting an extortion network allegedly linked to the La Familia Michoacana cartel, officials said Tuesday.
Dubbed “Operation Liberation” — “Operación Liberación” in Spanish — the coordinated raid spanned 14 municipalities in the state, including Valle de Bravo, Malinalco, Ixtapan de la Sal and Texcaltitlán.
Among those arrested in Tuesday’s sweep was an Ixtapan de la Sal councilwoman, identified as Yareli “N,” detained “in compliance with an apprehension order, for the probable participation in the crime of express kidnapping for the purposes of extortion.” (México state government)
Federal and state forces deployed 2,866 personnel and 698 vehicles while executing simultaneous searches of businesses used for hoarding and selling construction materials, meat, animals and other goods at vastly inflated prices.
In a press release from the Ministry of Security and Citizen Protection, García Harfuch added that it was essential “to halt these practices that sought to control economic sectors, from food supplies to construction materials … [to] dismantle their operations, seize assets linked to crime and regain control of the territory for the benefit of the public.”
Among those arrested was Yareli “N,” a councilwoman from Ixtapan de la Sal, about 60 kilometers south from Toluca, the state’s capital, and leaders of the cartel’s management structure.
The perpetrators allegedly forced merchants and residents to buy products exclusively from cartel-controlled stores or face violence. Anyone purchasing from outside sellers was subject to robbery and threats, authorities said.
“Residents are unable to turn to other establishments,” said State Prosecutor José Luis Cervantes Martínez.
— Gobierno del Estado de México (@Edomex) July 23, 2025
Investigators said the group manipulated prices through fake labor unions and front businesses, as well as through mines, butcher shops, egg stores, and chicken and pig farms.
In one case, according to authorities, a ton of rebar was sold for 23,950 pesos (US $1,292) — 33.5% above the market rate in Mexico — while a kilogram of whole chicken fetched 115 pesos, 53% more than normal.
In Texcaltitlán, for example, customers paid a mandatory five-peso fee per kilo to weigh cattle, while in Tejupilco, the group monopolized package delivery, charging “illegal fees” and sometimes confiscating goods.
Seized assets include 4,174 poultry, 17,657 kilograms of feed, 3.9 tons of meat, 5,000 bags of cement, 128 vehicles and 18 exotic animals — including pumas, peacocks, swans and raccoons.
The 52 properties seized included six mines, 24 warehouses, a slaughterhouse, a ranch, a hotel and an unnamed number of butcher shops, chicken farms and lumberyards.
Officials pledged many materials would be distributed to benefit affected communities, while also saying that the operation is ongoing and will continue until all responsible parties are brought to justice.
The power company is selling off its Mexican assets, worth US $4.7 billion, as it seeks to exit Mexico. (Iberdrola)
Iberdrola, Europe’s largest power company, has hired investment bank Barclays to sell all 15 of its renewable energy plants in Mexico in an effort to exit the country, the Spanish news website El Confidencial reported Wednesday.
Citing anonymous sources close to the deal, El Confidencial said Iberdrola is looking to sell due to concern about Mexico’s financial and legal stability.
Six wind farms are among the assets that Iberdrola is selling through the investment bank Barclays. (Iberdrola)
The assets on offer — six wind farms, three solar photovoltaic plants and six cogeneration or combined cycle units — are valued at US $4.7 billion.
Before that sell-off, the Spanish firm was the largest private generator in Mexico, with more than 11,000 MW installed, providing more than 15% of the nation’s electricity.
By then, Iberdrola had been a frequent target of López Obrador, who sought to give state-owned electricity utility CFE majority control over the local power market.
After the 2023 transaction, Iberdrola insisted it would remain in Mexico, but El Universal columnist Mario Maldonado reported that the company lacked confidence in President Claudia Sheinbaum’s energy policies, which continue to prioritize the CFE, prompting the decision to pull out of Mexico.
Although Iberdrola declined to comment on its agreement with Barclays and its pending departure from Mexico, it did announce a capital increase of five billion euros (US $5.87 billion) to finance investments in electricity networks in the United Kingdom and the United States.
Over the next six years, Iberdrola plans to invest some 55 billion euros (US $64.7 billion) in electricity grids, more than 80% of which will be invested in the U.K. and the U.S.
Iberdrola president Ignacio Sánchez Galán described the plan as “an unprecedented investment opportunity,” according to the newspaper Reforma.
The motorcycle driver was reportedly employed by the Chinese ride-hailing app DiDi, which is Uber’s main competition in Mexico City. (Rogelio Morales/Cuartoscuro)
Companies offering ride-hailing services on motorcycles could face legal action, Mexico City authorities announced shortly after a crash resulted in the death of a passenger Wednesday morning.
The fatal accident took place on Paseo de la Reforma on Wednesday morning, temporarily closing the thoroughfare to traffic. (Rogelio Morales/Cuartoscuro)
The city’s Mobility Ministry (Semovi) released a statement on social media in response to the fatal accident, saying the motorcycle driver had been apprehended.
Critics immediately railed against the authorities for failing to act sooner, pointing out that — as Semovi affirmed in its statement — motorcycle ride-sharing is prohibited by law.
“These motorcycle applications have been around for months and you are just now going to take action,” responded an X user named Sury.
Another respondent complained that city authorities frequently suspend and sanction bus companies that violate laws, but never take action against ride-hailing companies.
Although Semovi insisted in its statement that it is “committed to making sure that public transportation options are safe and reliable,” motorcycle rides have been openly available on ride-hailing apps in Mexico City for more than a year.
DiDi’s website encourages motorcycle owners to “generate extra income with one of the lowest service fees on the market.” In Mexico City, a ride with DiDi Moto costs half of what a DiDi Express ride (a car) costs. (DiDi México)
The magazine Proceso pointed out that city authorities were blocked from taking legal action when a federal judge ruled earlier this month that the services were private, not public.
Semovi said it is difficult to determine if a motorcycle is offering ride-sharing services since they don’t display company logos.
Colombian firm Picap was the first company to offer motorcycle passenger services in Mexico City, according to the newspaper La Prensa. The newspaper Milenio reported that it had been operating in the capital since before September 2024.
In June, marketing magazine Merca 2.0 reported that Uber Moto was operating in 25 Mexican cities, including the capital, where demand had increased eight-fold since Uber began offering the motorcycle service.
Last year, Uber spokesman Esteban Illades promoted Uber Moto as a system that “offers more reliable and accessible solutions to all its residents.”
None of the motorcycle ride-sharing companies have issued a statement since the accident.
Sheinbaum and Lula have met in person on several occasions since the former took office last October. Here they are in Honduras during the CELAC Summit in April. (Presidencia/Cuartoscuro)
Amid uncertainty in their trade relationships with the United States, Mexico and Brazil are seeking to enhance their commercial ties with each other.
President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke to her Brazilian counterpart, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula), on Wednesday ahead of a visit to Mexico by a Brazilian government and business delegation next month.
Esta tarde conversé telefónicamente con el presidente de Brasil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva; dimos seguimiento al acuerdo para recibir en México a autoridades y empresarios de Brasil, con el propósito de profundizar nuestra colaboración en diversos temas. pic.twitter.com/7LGdEQG53X
— Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (@Claudiashein) July 24, 2025
“We followed up on the agreement to welcome in Mexico authorities and business people from Brazil, with the aim of deepening our collaboration on various issues,” Sheinbaum wrote on social media.
In his own social media message, Lula said that he emphasized to Sheinbaum “the importance of deepening economic and trade relations between our countries, especially in light of the current uncertainty.”
Both Mexico and Brazil are aiming to reach agreements to stop those tariffs from taking effect, but there is no certainty they will achieve their goals.
In his social media post, Lula noted that he and Sheinbaum agreed that a delegation led by Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin would visit Mexico on Aug. 27 and 28.
He also said that he and Sheinbaum “discussed the expansion of the Brazil-Mexico trade agreement, highlighting the potential of the pharmaceutical, agricultural, ethanol, biodiesel, aerospace, innovation and education sectors as strategic areas in our bilateral relationship.”
Negotiations aimed at the expansion of the 23-year-old bilateral trade pact are expected to commence during next month’s meetings in Mexico.
Telefonei nesta quarta-feira, 23 de julho, para a presidenta do México, @Claudiashein. Recordei o encontro que tivemos durante a Cúpula do G7, no Canadá, e agradeci pela presença do chanceler mexicano na Cúpula do BRICS, no Rio de Janeiro.
After the Tegucigalpa meeting, Lula said that he and Sheinbaum “decided to further strengthen relations between our two countries by promoting periodic meetings between our governments and the productive sectors of industry in Brazil and Mexico.”
Her conversation with Lula on Thursday came just after Brazil adopted a new protocol that allows Mexico to export avocados to Latin America’s most populous country and largest economy.
Mexico’s exports to Brazil were worth $4.23 billion, while imports from Brazil were worth $10.3 billion.
Mexico’s top export to Brazil was motor vehicle parts and accessories, accounting for 19.1% of all revenue earned from products shipped to the South American country.
Auto sector exports (parts, cars and trucks) accounted for just over 43% of Mexico’s total revenue from products sent to Brazil last year.
Mexico’s largest import from Brazil in 2024 was intermediate products of iron or non-alloy steel, accounting for 20.5% of the total outlay on Brazilian products.
Mexico’s second largest export from Brazil was cars followed by meat.
A Mexico-Brazil trade pact signed in 2002 “sets the exemption or the reduction of import fees for some 800 types of products,” Reuters reported last September when Mexican and Brazilian authorities began advocating for an updated and expanded agreement.
Marcelo Ebrard, economy minister since the beginning of the Sheinbaum administration, said at the time that “the growth of our relationship has already topped that agreement.”
The two countries are the No. 1 and No. 2 economies in Latin America. Brazil’s nominal GDP in 2024 was US $2.17 trillion last year, according to the IMF, while Mexico’s GDP was $1.85 trillion.
On Wednesday, the peso got a boost from increased market optimism following U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that he had reached a trade deal with Japan. (Margarito Perez Retana/Cuartoscuro)
The Mexican peso appreciated against the US dollar for a fourth consecutive trading day on Wednesday to close at its strongest position in 2025.
The peso closed at 18.53 to the greenback on Wednesday, according to the Bank of Mexico (Banxico), an appreciation of around 0.6% compared to its closing position on Tuesday.
The last time the peso was stronger was in August 2024.
By the close of trading on Wednesday, the peso had appreciated around 1.2% compared to its closing position last Thursday.
In 2025, the currency has gained more than 11% against the greenback. On the first trading day of the year, Jan. 2, the peso closed at 20.62 to the dollar, according to Banxico.
On Thursday morning, the peso weakened slightly to trade at 18.56 to the dollar at 9 a.m. Mexico City time, according to Yahoo! Finance.
On Wednesday, the peso got a boost from increased market optimism following U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he had reached a trade deal with Japan.
El tipo de cambio alcanza un nuevo mínimo en el año 18.5285 pesos por donar, no visto desde el 1 de agosto de 2024. pic.twitter.com/OUp0Iyukdz
— Gabriela Siller Pagaza (@GabySillerP) July 23, 2025
Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Mexican bank Banco Base, said that the peso could appreciate further if Banxico pauses its rate-cutting cycle and signals a more restrictive monetary policy stance moving forward.
The peso generally benefits from a higher interest rate in Mexico relative to the United States Federal Reserve’s federal funds rate, which is currently set at a 4.25%-4.50% range.
Another factor that could affect the MXN-USD exchange rate in the near term is the outcome of ongoing trade negotiations between Mexico and the United States.
In a July 11 letter, Trump informed President Claudia Sheinbaum that on Aug. 1, he would impose a 30% tariff on “Mexican products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral Tariffs,” which currently apply to steel, aluminum and vehicles.
A deal between Mexico and the U.S. that stops the proposed 30% tariff from taking effect could give the peso an additional boost, and perhaps propel the currency to a new 2025 high.
Move over New York, there's plenty of pizzaz around these parts, too. (Jimmy Monack)
“Little Shop of Horrors,” “Rent,” “Avenue Q” and “Hamilton”: All had their beginnings off-Broadway. More importantly, off-Broadway — and don’t forget Off Off Broadway — is the playground in the United States for experimental theater and where, frankly, the cool people go to the theater.
Here in Mexico City, one can see “Lion King” and “Spamalot” and other hits from London and New York. But here, the cool people go to the theater in Colonia Juárez.
David Olguín, Artistic Director and main Theater el Milagro and Gabriel Pascal , Artistic Director and scenographer, set designer, and lighting designer. (James Monack)
Conventional wisdom says that the hipster crown will soon be passed from Roma to La Juárez and the signs are clear that it will be even hipster-ier. Jackhammers, circuit saws and cement trucks are the soundtrack of this neighborhood as restaurants, speakeasies, photo studios and dance schools pop up on a weekly basis. But the enduring force embedded in La Juárez is its rich history of independent theaters.
One of the best examples of this vibrant new atmosphere is located in the charming Bazar Fusión on Calle Londres which houses boutique clothiers, fine food and even a cigar shop. Most importantly, Foro 37 brings comedy, magic and intimate productions to round out a perfect evening
Isabel Arce, General Director, who opened Foro 37 nine years ago, says “When we first opened the theater it was a very unknown neighborhood. It was like the backyard of Roma.” Yet, like many artistic hubs, La Juárez was simply cheaper and thus attracted artists of all kinds looking for inexpensive spaces to create.
And as Roma becomes more known for restaurants, Juárez is becoming much more of a cultural core. While fine dining is certainly available in Juárez, Foro 37 can add to an evening with a real feeling of connecting with an intimate performance. It is, perhaps, what many people who enjoy the grand blockbusters like “Chicago” miss out on. With the Foro 37’s seat capacity at 49, Arce’s vision of personal experience has been a great success, and she hopes for more.
From musicals to comedy and even a play inspired and written from the perspective of prison inmates, Isabel Arce will always be on the lookout for material that inspires.
On the other side of Avenida Insurgentes, closer to Zona Rosa, is the Teatro Varsovia, where directors Rodrigo González and Raúl Tamez bring a variety of acts to La Juárez. Interestingly, the theater was built as part of a housing complex by the famed functionalist architect Mario Pani. The idea was that a theater is just as important as plumbing or a working elevator. Yet as time passed, so did architectural trends, and the building went on to be used for other purposes. What this meant for González and Tamez was that they didn’t need to do much building or hunting for used theater seats; they only needed to put on excellent productions.
Raul Tamez, Artistic Director of Varsova and Theater and Rodrigo González, Artistic Director. (James Monack)
“This neighborhood has always been bohemian,” says Tamez, explaining the intellectual climate that became the center of the LGBTQ+ rights movement in Mexico. “Also because of that, there were lots of cabaret and trans shows.”
Teatro Varsovia, with its mixed audience of young and old, gay and straight, Chilango and gringo, produces a wide variety of shows beyond just plays. They have all kinds of music from Baroque to rock and roll to comedy shows and musicals. But when a play is staged here, Tamez explains, “It has to be raw and emotional.” Productions at the Varsovia follow in the tradition of playwrights like David Mamet and Wendy Wasserstein, who utilize small settings with emotionally charged characters.
For a great outing in La Juárez where one will be pleasantly surprised, Teatro Varsovia provides and opportunity for something new… or classic…or edgy…or heartwarming. All are available.
Finally, there is the Teatro Milagro, perhaps the pluckiest of the theaters listed here. Unlike Varsovia, getting this venue running had to retrofit an otherwise forgotten building the way many independent spaces need to. But that is a tradition that goes back to the 1960s according to playwright David Olguín, who sits on the theater’s steering committee.
“It was a slow process,” Olguín says, referring to the rebuilding after the devastating 1985 earthquake. And inside the theater, one can see the reinforcements that have been installed to be within safety codes. In a way, it helps support the idea that creative people will make use of any space with potential.
For the last 17 years, Milagro has mounted productions as varied as “Waiting for Godot” or Lysistrata to modern dramas like Aldo Martínez Sandoval’s “La caducidad de la lavanda,” which is set in a morgue. New plays often premier at the Milagro.
There are many things that indicate that Colonia Juárez will be outshining Roma as the most fashionable and culturally cutting-edge part of the city, and a strong independent theater scene is vital for that success.
Watch out, Roma: Juárez is biting at your heels.
Jimmy Monack is a teacher, photographer and award-winning writer. He profiles interesting people all around the world as well as writing about and photographing rock concerts. He lives in Mexico City. www.jimmymonack.com
Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas is making its first visits to Cabo San Lucas in 2025. (Royal Caribbean)
What a difference a few months make. Earlier in the year, Cabo San Lucas business owners were panicked over the US $42 cruise tax passed by the national Senate and its potential tourism impacts, given the lingering threat of cruise lines removing Mexican Riviera destinations from their itineraries.
However, now that the tax has been negotiated down to a manageable US $5 per person, at least for the short term, the substantial number of people in the Land’s End city who rely on the cruise industry —can instead focus on the other big cruise news, which is that the destination is on pace for a record-setting year, thanks in part to an unprecedentedly robust summer schedule.
Why the cruise tax was reduced
Princess Cruises invented the term Mexican Riviera, and remains a frequent visitor to Land’s End. (Princess Cruises)
Cruise ship companies were furious when the US $42 cruise tax was passed, noting that it would make visits to Mexico’s ports 213% more expensive than those in the Caribbean, and thus no longer feasible from a business perspective. Businesspeople in port destinations in Mexico like Cabo San Lucas weren’t happy either, since the estimated one billion dollars annually generated by cruise ship visits helps to sustain local economies.
Given this pushback, negotiations between government officials in Mexico and the cruise ship industry began months before the tax was due to take effect on July 1, and a compromise solution was hammered out. The cruise tax would be reduced to US $5 for every person who takes a cruise with port calls in Mexico, regardless of whether they get off the ship or not.
Of course, the US $5 figure will only apply during 2025 and the first half of 2026. The tax will increase incrementally over the next three years, rising to $10 in August 2026, $15 in June 2027 and finally $21 in August 2028. What’s more, cruise lines will be responsible for collecting the tax — another bone of contention that appears to have been amicably worked out… at least for now.
Record-setting projections for Cabo San Lucas
Cruise ships have been visiting Mexican Riviera destinations since the 1960s, when Princess Cruises pioneered the idea. But there’s no question that cruise ship passengers to Cabo San Lucas are on an upward trajectory and have risen to record heights in recent years.
In 2022, for instance, Cabo San Lucas received 227 cruise ships with 540,773 passengers. Ports of call were in the same range the next two years. Passenger numbers, however, shot through the roof thanks to more consistent visits from bigger ships with expanded carrying capacities. A record 735,686 cruise ship passengers visited Cabo in 2023, and although that number slightly dipped in 2024, to 724,331, more than 800,000 are expected by the end of 2025.
How is cruise ship capacity influencing these numbers? In 2022, each ship brought an average of 2,382 passengers. In 2023, that average jumped to 3,117 passengers per ship, and in 2024 it increased to 3,516. That number likely won’t rise again in 2025: through the first five months of this year, there have been 118 port of call visits bringing 410,648 passengers. That’s an average of ‘only’ 3,480 people per ship.
However, overall passenger numbers are pacing for another all-time high. Through May, cruise ship visitors were up an astonishing 34% over the same period in 2024. Summer ports of call are also more robust than usual. As a local source intimate with the cruise industry commented, “Usually there are about five ships per month in the summer. This year, it’s closer to 20.”
That makes it difficult to come up with an accurate projection for what numbers will look like by the end of 2025. If we take the arrivals through May and project them for the entire year, the total would be about 985,000. But that’s likely an unrealistic figure, since January through May are high season months, while June to September represent the destination’s traditional slow season, bringing fewer visitors.
But given that summer arrivals are headed for uncharted territory, too, anticipating upwards of 800,000 passengers in 2025 seems a safe bet.
Exciting new ships and arrivals
Carnival’s Ovation of the Seas is Cabo’s most hotly awaited arrival in 2025. (Forever Karen)
So the cruise ship industry is booming in Cabo San Lucas, with eight cruise companies — Carnival, Cunard, Holland America, Norwegian, Oceania Cruises, Regent Seven Seas, Princess, and Royal Caribbean — and at least 24 individual ships scheduled to visit at some point this year. Those ships combined represent a capacity of over 70,000 passengers, and several of them will be making more than a dozen visits. Carnival’s Panorama, for example, has already been a frequent visitor to Cabo San Lucas this year, with more port calls upcoming.
The Carnival Panorama, of course, is a major presence on the West Coast and has been since it launched in 2019. It was Carnival’s first new ship to be permanently homeported in Long Beach, California, in more than two decades, and since it carries up to 4,008 passengers, it’s a welcome arrival at any cruise port in Mexico.
However, perhaps the most eagerly anticipated visitor this year is Royal Caribbean’s Ovation of the Seas, which since May 28 , has been homeported in Los Angeles for the first time in its history, meaning it’s also making its first trips to Cabo San Lucas. Unusually, overnight stays in Cabo are often included in its three to six-night cruises.
It’s not a permanent assignment for the company’s biggest ever LA-based ship — 168,666 gross registered tons, with over 2,000 staterooms accommodating up to 4,180 passengers at double occupancy — as Ovation of the Seas will be redeployed in September, with Quantum of the Seas replacing it. But it does reflect Royal Caribbean’s increased focus on the West Coast. Voyager of the Seas will join Quantum in Los Angeles in October, and that same month, Serenade of the Seas is set to begin Mexican Riviera cruises out of San Diego, with stops in Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas and La Paz.
Cunard, meanwhile, is a far less frequent visitor to Cabo San Lucas, but one of its four ships, Queen Elizabeth, will make a port call on Oct, 3, during its 18-day voyage from San Francisco to Miami. It’s a rare treat in what is turning out to be an extraordinary year for cruises in Mexico.
Chris Sands is the Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best, writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook and a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily. His specialty is travel-related content and lifestyle features focused on food, wine and golf.
The president also gave her opinion of recent comments by soccer star Javier "Chicharito" Hernández that have been widely criticized and described as sexist and misogynistic. (Graciela López/Cuartoscuro)
Automotive production in Mexico and controversial comments made by a famous Mexican soccer player were among the issues President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke about at her Wednesday morning press conference.
Here is a recap of the president’s July 23 mañanera.
Sheinbaum: No automaker has plans to leave Mexico
Two days after the website Automotive News reported that Nissan “plans to shrink its industrial footprint in Mexico by ending production at two assembly plants,” Sheinbaum said that no automaker “has told us that they’re going to move out of our country — none.”
She said that moving an auto production plant “is not so easy” as it costs billions of dollars and “requires a lot of time.”
Sheinbaum highlighted that vehicles made in Mexico and Canada with at least some U.S. content get a “discount” on the 25% auto tariffs the United States implemented earlier this year. Vehicles made in Mexico for export to the United States have, on average, 40% U.S. — and thus duty-free — content, lowering the effective tariff rate to 15%.
Sheinbaum acknowledged that automakers with lower U.S. content in their vehicles that export to the United States in accordance with “most favored nation” rules, rather than under the USMCA, face a higher tariff.
However, those “mainly European” automakers haven’t said they’re leaving the country either, she said.
Nissan has three plants in Mexico — two in the state of Aguascalientes and one in Morelos — from which it exports about 320,000 vehicles to the U.S. each year. (Nissan)
“We’re in personal contact with all the companies … and none has suggested moving [out of Mexico]. Nissan even … moved part of production of one of its models from Argentina to Mexico and there will be greater production in our country,” Sheinbaum said.
“According to two people with knowledge of the matter, Nissan is expected to shut down its nearly 60-year-old Civac plant in south-central Mexico no later than March 2027, the end of the Japanese carmaker’s business year,” the website said.
“Additionally, Nissan is expected to dissolve its COMPAS joint venture with Mercedes after crossover production at the 2.37-million-square-foot factory in Aguascalientes, Mexico, concludes early next year,” Automotive News said.
As of 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nissan hadn’t commented publicly on the claims in the Automotive News report.
Rodrigo Centeno, president and general director of Nissan Mexicana, said in April that Nissan was sticking to its current production and investment plans for Mexico despite the United States’ imposition of tariffs on imported vehicles.
“There is no modification to short-term plans because to a large extent those decisions aren’t short-term ones,” he said at the time.
“… We don’t have any change on the table at this time. We have the pedal to the metal,” Centeno said.
His assertion served as reassurance for the Mexican auto sector as Nissan’s CEO Makoto Uchida said in February that the automaker could leave Mexico if 25% tariffs proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump were to take effect.
Nissan has three plants in Mexico — two in the state of Aguascalientes and one in Morelos — from which it exports about 320,000 vehicles to the U.S. each year. The company sold more cars in Mexico last year than any other automaker.
Chicharito ‘has a lot to learn’ about women, says Sheinbaum
A reporter asked the president about recent remarks made by soccer star Javier “Chicharito” Hernández that have been widely criticized and described as sexist and misogynistic.
Hernández, a former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Mexican national team footballer who now plays for the Chivas de Guadalajara, made the remarks in a series of videos posted to social media.
In one, he says: “Women, you are failing. You are eradicating masculinity, making society hyper-sensitive. You embody feminine energy: caring, nourishing, receiving, multiplying, cleaning, maintaining the home that is the most precious place for us men. Don’t be afraid to be women, to allow yourselves to be led by a man who only wants to see you happy.”
Sheinbaum said that Chicharito is a “very good soccer player,” but with regard to his opinions about women, she declared: “I think he still has a lot to learn because women can be whatever we want to be.”
A relationship between a woman and a man is “a relationship of equality,” the president said, pointing out that the concept of “substantive equality” is now in the Mexican Constitution.
“It’s equality, but each [gender] with its own characteristics,” Sheinbaum said.
“… In terms of access to all rights, there is equality,” she said.
Sheinbaum said that the idea that a woman’s place is in the home is a “very sexist” idea.
“It’s not about arguing with ‘el Chicharito’ because he’s a great soccer player and has represented Mexico at different times. But it is important that all men in our country recognize women as people,” she said.
“… Women can be whatever we want to be. This is a learning not just for women … but also for men, for society as a whole,” Sheinbaum said.
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
