The conglomerate, best known for ownership of convenience store chain Oxxo, has taken further steps into the fintech sector with this acquisition.(Depositphotos)
FEMSA, the Coca-Cola bottler that owns the Oxxo convenience store chain, announced it has successfully closed on the acquisition of Mexican fintech startup NetPay. FEMSA had originally announced its intention to purchase the company in November.
NetPay, founded in 2008, offers payment services and solutions to micro, small and medium-sized businesses, such as payment terminals and electronic wallets. The company is based in Monterrey.
NetPay has offered digital payments services in the Mexican market since 2008. (@NetPayMX/Twitter)
According to a FEMSA statement sent to the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) in November, the acquisition will boost the company’s share in the fintech segment and the digital solutions markets as part of the company’s three strategic pillars – its Business-to-Business (B2B) division, Oxxo’s proprietary fintech Spin and the Oxxo Premia loyalty program.
FEMSA’s participation in NetPay dates from 2019, when the company acquired a minority equity stake in the startup. To buy the outstanding shares, the company closed a purchase deal with NetPay’s majority shareholders last year.
José Antonio Fernández Garza, CEO of FEMSA’s technology division Digital@FEMSA, said in November that the acquisition would help the company in its objective to transform “the relationship between the people of Mexico and their money,” and to help “independent entrepreneurs to strengthen their operations and increase their profitability.”
In 2021, FEMSA entered the fintech sector with their Spin by Oxxoservice, which can be used to send and receive money from other Spin accounts, in addition to regular bank accounts and non-bank users. In February, the app had 5 million users and the company estimates it will reach up to 10 million this year.
There are over 20,000 Oxxo stores across Mexico and their loyalty program has 26 million users, according to analyst Marisol Huerta at Ve por Más bank in an interview with La Jornada newspaper.
FEMSA announced in February its decision to exit the brewery industry by selling its Heineken shares, prioritizing instead investment in the company’s most profitable businesses, such as the Oxxo convenience stores and digital services.
“Oxxo has managed to position itself as one of the main retail companies in the country,” said Huerta. “If there’s potential, they [FEMSA] always go after new businesses.”
The mummies were displayed as a part of the
Guanajuato state stall at the Tianguis Turístico in Mexico City. (Mario Jasso/Cuartoscuro)
“Watch out for those mummies!”
That’s pretty much what experts from Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) were screaming last week after a traveling display of six mummies from Guanajuato was presented in Mexico City.
The Guanajuato mummies date back to the 19th century, and were preserved in the mineral-rich soil of the state. (ReyungCho/Wikimedia)
The mummies were displayed inside glass cases at the Tianguis Turístico, a four-day tourism fair, but officials from INAH expressed concerns that the 190-year-old corpses could pose a public health risk, especially since one of them appeared to have fungal growth.
INAH issued a statement on March 31 distancing itself from a decision by the state government of Guanajuato to display the mummies, saying it had not been consulted about the transfer and handling of the bodies and questioning whether the glass cases were airtight.
The mummies were reportedly viewed by more than 15,000 people during the 47th edition of the fair — Mexico’s biggest tourism industry event — held at the Centro Citibanamex convention center from March 26 to 29.
“It is even more worrisome that they are still being exhibited without the biohazard safeguards needed for the public,” the institute wrote, alluding to the dozens of corpses on permanent display at the Mummy Museum in the city of Guanajuato (which is not operated by INAH) — a visit to which is perhaps one of the most macabre experiences in the country.
Some have expressed concern about the ethics of using corpses as an advertisement for tourism. (@aliasLIMBO/Twitter)
Upon seeing published photos of the six traveling mummies, INAH stated, officials observed that “at least one of the corpses on display, which was inspected by the institute in November 2021, shows signs of a proliferation of possible fungal colonies.”
In general, added INAH, the Guanajuato mummies should “be carefully studied to see if these represent signs of risk for the cultural patrimony, as well as for those who handle them and come to see them.”
The preserved corpses were unintentionally mummified when they were buried in crypts in Guanajuato’s dry, mineral-rich soil, reportedly in the 1830s. Some still have hair, leathery skin and their original clothing.
They were exhibited at the tourism fair without authorization from INAH, the agency stressed, although Guanajuato mayor Alejandro Navarro said he received thanks for the display from Miguel Torruco, Mexico’s tourism minister.
The mummies began to be dug up and put on display in the 1860s because their families could no longer pay a local “perpetual burial” fee.
“This may be the most important exhibit on Mexican culture in the last 30 years,” Martina Guzman, the exhibition’s content developer, said at the time.
García Luna was convicted by U.S. prosecutors of international cocaine distribution, among other charges. His attorneys have been granted more time to pursue potentially favorable new evidence they say has come to light since the conviction in February. (File photo by Tercero Diaz/Cuartoscuro)
A federal judge in the United States has agreed to postpone the sentencing of former security minister Genaro García Luna, who was convicted on drug trafficking charges in February.
Judge Brian M. Cogan of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York granted defense lawyers’ request for a three-month adjournment for posttrial motions and the sentencing of their client, who was Mexico’s security minister in the 2006–2012 government led by former president Felipe Calderón and head of the now-defunct Federal Investigation Agency before that.
Juez Brian Cogan aceptó pedido de abogados de Genaro García Luna, amigo, asesor, confidente, mano derecha y Secretario de Seguridad Pública de @FelipeCalderon de aplazar 3 meses la fecha de su sentencia que ahora será el próximo 27 de septiembre. pic.twitter.com/HQUKnEYFeH
US federal judge Brian M. Cogan granted García Luna’s attorneys more time to pursue new evidence leads that could support planned motions requesting an acquittal and/or a new trial.
García Luna, who was found guilty of colluding with the notorious Sinaloa Cartel and lying to U.S. authorities, will now be sentenced on Sept. 27. He faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Defense lawyers, including the ex-official’s lead attorney César de Castro, wrote to Cogan on Monday to request the postponement so as “to permit the defense to continue developing evidence in support of a potential Rule 33 motion.”
Rule 33 in the U.S. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure allows a court to grant a new trial “if the interest of justice so requires.”
De Castro and his colleagues wrote that since the guilty verdict was reached on Feb. 21, “several individuals, including former law enforcement officials, have contacted us with potential new evidence favorable to the defense that could result in the filing of a Rule 33 motion in the short term.”
Genaro, who remains in custody, was convicted in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of New York, seen here. (Shutterstock)
“Following these numerous substantial leads, potentially filing a Rule 29 [acquittal] motion, and preparing for significant sentencing advocacy is too difficult,” they wrote.
“Rather than proceed with Mr. García Luna’s sentencing and initiation of an appeal, which would divest the Court of jurisdiction to hear the motion until the Second Circuit granted a motion to remand the case to Your Honor … the appropriate use of resources would be to simply adjourn the dates as we request,” the letter continued.
“After all, the government is not prejudiced in any way — Mr. García Luna is not at liberty and will remain detained.”
Under the new posttrial timeline, any application for a new trial must be submitted by July 7.
García Luna’s conviction in February came more than three years after he was arrested in Dallas, Texas, on charges that he allowed the Sinaloa Cartel to operate in exchange for multimillion-dollar bribes.
A jury in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York found the former security minister guilty of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, international cocaine distribution conspiracy; cocaine distribution and possession conspiracy; cocaine importation conspiracy; and making a false statement on an application for U.S. citizenship.
President López Obrador, seen here at a press conference on March 9, has used the García Luna trial to support his assertions that during the ex-security minister’s tenure under President Felipe Calderón, Mexico was a “narco-state.” (Galo Cañas Rodríguez/Cuartoscuro)
The unanimous decision came after an almost month-long trial that included damning testimony from cartel figures such as Jesús “El Rey” Zambada, brother of current Sinaloa Cartel leader Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
President López Obrador has used the conviction to support his claim that Mexico was a “narco-state” during the presidency of Calderón.
The former president has denied having any knowledge of García Luna’s criminal activities, and defended his integrity and crime-fighting record in a statement issued in response to the conviction of his security minister.
De Castro asserted in his closing statement at the trial that the government’s lack of evidence against his client was “shocking.”
“They’re asking you to condemn a man solely on the words of some of the most notorious and ruthless criminals this world has ever seen,” he told the 12-person jury.
In many places across Mexico, Holy Week, which marks the lead up into Easter Sunday on April 9, kicked off with Palm Sunday processions. According to Christian tradition, Palm Sunday is when Jesus entered Jerusalem. (Moisés Pablo/Cuartoscuro)
Holy Week (Semana Santa), the week leading into Easter Sunday, is an important time of year in Mexico. Visitors to the country might be surprised to discover that many businesses and public institutions will be closed on Thursday April 6 and Friday April 7 — Holy Thursday and Good Friday, and that Mexicans will be celebrating not only during Semana Santa but the week starting after Easter Sunday, known as pascua.
Although not government-sanctioned holidays, many Mexicans traditionally take at least Holy Thursday and Good Friday off, giving themselves an unofficial puente (long weekend). As many Mexicans will take these days off anyway, many businesses simply close for the long weekend — maybe going on vacation themselves. You may find a sign on your favorite restaurant or local store saying “closed for Semana Santa.” Don’t expect them to be open until at least Easter Monday.
With schools out for two weeks, many families look to spend time making the most of their vacations. (Elizabeth Ruiz/Cuartoscuro)
Even many banks have announced that they will be closed this year on April 6 and 7. ATMs will remain in service, however.
As usual, the Education Ministry (SEP) has given students a two-week break, which already started Monday and lasts through April 14. (Some private schools not affiliated with SEP may follow an alternative calendar.) This means families who can afford to take off Holy Week or even both weeks for beach vacation or travel abroad.
Spending Holy Week with family is also traditional, and families often travel around the country to do so, meaning that this time of year sees high volumes of traffic on roads and at airports, so plan accordingly.
If you beat the traffic, however, you can look forward to a country that is fully in the holiday spirit, with beaches, monuments and parks likely to be full of vacationers looking to make the most of a rare week off work.
A young man prepares to play an ancient Roman soldier in a Holy Week procession later this week in Itzapalapa, Mexico City. The neighborhood will mark its 180th consecutive iteration of the event this week. (Graciela Lopez Herrera/Cuartoscuro)
Semana Santa can also be a perfect time to visit a normally busy place, like Mexico City for example — exactly because residents have left the megalopolis.
Whether you stay at home or travel yourself, wherever you are, Holy Week festivities will be taking place across the country in your area. They started already on Sunday, in fact, which was Palm Sunday.
According to Catholic tradition, the day marks Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem, and so in town squares all over Mexico, there are processions recreating this biblical event, and vendors often sell palm fronds and all sorts of food, souvenirs and toys to visiting tourists or people-watching locals.
While many Mexicans will spend Semana Santa reclining on a beach, for those foreigners looking to immerse themselves in Mexican culture, there is a lot to discover this week, as the nation celebrates.
From elaborate processions reenacting the Stations of the Cross to the devout making intense public displays of faith, to fireworks fueling sputtering castillosand “exploding” Judases, there will likely be something interesting to see in your town square on many days of Holy Week.
Normal hours for most businesses and institutions will resume on Easter Monday, April 10.
If you live in an expat enclave in Mexico, you're likely familiar with the phenomenon: around this time of year, many of your friends prepare to leave and spend the spring and summer in their home countries. (@suegresham/depositphotos)
No doubt about it, the expat enclaves in Mexico are full.
Restaurants, charity events, the charming cobblestone streets in Centro Histórico, grocery stores, the mercados, the theater and all the beaches … “We” are everywhere, in great numbers.
It happens every year at this time, and although it’s exciting and contagiously fun, it’s also a little bittersweet. It means we’ve reached the high point of our seasonal cycle, and the pendulum will soon start swinging back in the other direction.
If you live in one of these towns or cities, you know what I mean: people begin leaving, or making plans to leave, setting up last lunches and get-togethers, buying things to take back up north, getting their properties ready for the summer ahead.
As one-who-stays, I’m already planning for the summer months too, albeit in different ways. I’ll have my air conditioners cleaned and checked, put the extra bed covers away and start getting ready to change my schedule so that shopping, outdoor exercise and errands are done early in the morning rather than later in the day, before it gets too hot.
Reading is a big part of my summer life, and I’m thankful to those who bring new books when they come and then leave them here for those of us who might not travel back and forth so much. Yes, I have a Kindle, but I always prefer a real book experience, if at all possible.
I just finished Willa Cather’s classic, “The Song of the Lark,” originally published in 1915. It’s a sweet, simple story of a young farm girl gifted with a beautiful singing voice, and her struggles to learn more about music and get the training she desperately wants. Seeing her natural talent, a music teacher encourages her to go to Europe to learn from the best. “But how?” she asks.
“Nothing is far and nothing is near, if one desires,” he tells her. “The world is little, people are little, human life is little. There is only one big thing — desire. And before it, when it is big, all is little.”
This month, in between everything else you’re doing, I hope you find time to sit quietly and think about your own desires, your own dreams. Because, really, what could be more worthwhile or valuable to think about, to plan and direct one’s energy toward?
Those, more than anything else we do or say or accomplish, are what makes us exclusively and distinctly “us,” and what satisfies our soul like nothing else. And for most of us, whether we’re snowbirds or full-timers, moving to Mexico was one of those dreams that’s now been realized. Are we better people for it? I’d say yes — unequivocally and joyfully yes.
Guadalupe Taddei was officially sworn in as the new INE president on Monday. Outgoing president Lorenzo Córdova had a 41% approval rating as he finished his nine-year tenure, according to El Financiero's poll. (Instituto Nacional Electoral / Cuartoscuro.com)
Fewer than six in ten Mexicans approve of the work carried out by the National Electoral Institute (INE), according to the results of a poll published Monday.
A national survey conducted by the El Financiero newspaper found an approval rating of 59% for the elections oversight agency, a decline of nine points compared to October 2022.
The National Electoral Institute (INE) has been the subject of intense criticism from President López Obrador. (Archive)
The publication of the poll comes as INE president Lorenzo Córdova concludes his nine-year tenure at the helm of the autonomous body.
Only 41% of those polled said they approved of the work Córdova has done as Mexico’s electoral chief, while 53% said they disapproved.
Both the INE and its staff have faced repeated attacks from President López Obrador, who recently called Córdova “an anti-democratic character.”
López Obrador claims that the INE’s predecessor, the Federal Electoral Institute, permitted electoral fraud that cost him the 2006 and 2012 presidential elections. A legislative proposal submitted by the president to reform the INE was approved in February but the Supreme Court suspended the application of the relevant laws in late March.
Protesters in cities all over Mexico showed up in the streets to express support for a robust National Electoral Institute in February. (Photo by Fernando Carranza García)
Hundreds of thousands of Mexicans took to the streets in late February to protest the so-called “Plan B” reform package – which critics consider a threat to Mexico’s democracy – and demonstrate their support for the INE.
But the results of El Financiero’s poll show that confidence in the agency’s capacity to organize elections has waned since October, when 68% of respondents approved of its election organization work. The percentage of poll respondents who disapproved of the INE increased from 29% to 38% in the same period.
Just over half of those polled – 53% – said they approve of the work the INE and the Federal Electoral Tribunal do to supervise electoral processes in Mexico, a decline of 10 points since October. The percentage of respondents who disapprove of their supervisory work increased by nine points in the same period to 43%.
Approval for Córdova’s work was highest among poll respondents who identified as supporters of Mexico’s opposition parties, among which are the National Action Party (PAN) and Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). Two-thirds of such respondents said they approved of Córdova’s work, while the figure among supporters of the ruling Morena party was 44%.
When Guadalupe Taddei was head of the Sonora Electoral Institute, the National Action Party accused her of favoring Morena and its allies in 2021’s state electoral process. (Photo courtesy of IEE Sonora)
Interestingly, Córdova’s approval rating among non-aligned respondents was just 33%, while 59% of that group said they disapproved of the outgoing INE president.
El Financiero also asked poll respondents about their confidence in the process to replace Córdova and three outgoing electoral councilors.
The survey was conducted on March 24 and 25, a week before the election of four INE officials, including new president Guadalupe Taddei. Typically, candidates need support from two-thirds of lawmakers in the Chamber of Deputies to be elected. After failing to reach a majority, the Chamber resorted to sortition, or the drawing of lots, to elect its new members.
Forty-seven percent of respondents said they were very or somewhat confident in the process to elect replacements, while the same percentage said they had little or no confidence in it.
The process, which resulted in the nomination of 20 candidates for four positions, was carried out by a “technical committee” made up of seven members of civil society.
Three-quarters of Morena party supporters expressed trust in the process, while the percentage of opposition supporters and non-partisan respondents who said the same was just 39% and 36%, respectively.
The election of Taddei – who on Monday became the first woman to lead Mexico’s electoral agency – has been criticized as two of Taddei’s relatives hold government positions and another is a Morena lawmaker in the state of Sonora.
The PAN said it would challenge the election of Taddei and one of the incoming electoral councilors due to their “clear links” to the Morena party, which was founded by López Obrador as a civil society association in 2011 before becoming a political party in 2014.
Remains of the balloon that caught fire and crashed in a field in Mexico state on Sunday. In the balloon was a pilot and a couple and their teenage daughter. Only the pilot and the daughter survived. (Alerta Copoya/Facebook)
México state authorities have located the pilot of a hot-air balloon involved in an accident Saturday, in which a married couple was killed and their teenage daughter injured.
The basket of the balloon caught fire Saturday morning, as it flew near the Teotihuacán archaeological site, located about 50 kilometers northeast of central Mexico City.
Site of the crash in Teotihuacán. The red fabric is a screen that emergency personnel set up to cordon off the site. (Rogelio Morales Ponce / Cuartoscuro.com)
Video footage shows a ball of fire engulfing the basket and at least one person plummeting toward the ground.
José Nolasco, 50, and Viridiana Becerril, 39, died, while their 13-year-old daughter Regina sustained first- and second-degree burns and a broken arm, according to authorities in México state, where Teotihuacán is located.
Regina was transported to a hospital in Axapusco, México state, and later transferred to the Children’s Hospital in the state capital, Toluca. She is reportedly in stable condition.
According to reports, Becerril threw herself from the basket when it was 10–15 meters above the ground while Nolasco remained in the basket and was burned to death.
Regina’s grandmother, Reyna Sarmiento Lara, told reporters Sunday that her grandaughter was conscious and that in addition to her other reported injuries, Regina had second-degree burns from the accident. (Screen capture)
Regina jumped from the basket when it was about 5 meters above the ground, while the pilot jumped when it was approximately 4 meters above the ground, W Radio reported.
The México state Attorney General’s Office (FGJEM) said in a statement Sunday that police had located the pilot in a hospital in Hidalgo, where he was receiving medical treatment for extensive burns.
The FGJEM said that police from México state and Hidalgo were guarding the pilot, who has been identified in media reports as Víctor Guzmán Pérez.
The newspaper El Financiero reported that Guzmán told police that he fled after jumping from the balloon’s basket because he had no experience responding to emergency situations and didn’t know what to do.
The FGJEM said it was “maintaining permanent contact with the family members of the victims,” adding that it has provided support to them “in the face of this terrible situation.”
The office said it was working with state and federal authorities to establish the cause of what it considered to be a crime.
From left to right: José Nolasco, Viridiana Becerril and their daughter, Regina. Nolasco and Becerril died in the accident. Regina leaped from the hot-air balloon when it was at 5 meters above ground and survived with injuries. (Social media)
The statement also said that the FGJEM has seized properties “allegedly related to the company” that provided the hot-air balloon flight – identified as Autocinema Retrovisor – and is carrying out a thorough investigation aimed at determining what happened on Saturday and establishing criminal responsibility.
Nolasco and his daughter planned the hot-air balloon flight as a celebration for Becerril’s birthday, according to Becerril’s mother, Reyna Sarmiento Lara. Sarmiento told reporters on Sunday that her granddaughter was already conscious and had second-degree burns.
The family reportedly traveled from their home in Mexico City to the municipality of San Juan Teotihuacán to take a flight over Teotihuacán, the pre-Hispanic city known for its two towering pyramids.
There have been several other hot-air balloon accidents in the Teotihuacán area, where flying over the Pyramid of the Sun and Pyramid of the Moon is a popular tourist activity.
The Teotihuacán Hot-Air Balloon Association said in a statement that the company that owned the balloon involved in Saturday’s accident is not among its eight members that “operate within all applicable legal and regulatory frameworks.”
The Tianguis Turístico allowed Mexican states to advertise their tourist potential to investors and businesses across the world. Here, the state of Coahuila advertises itself as a site for tourism related to dinosaurs and fossils. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
The largest tourism fair in Latin America came to a close with record sales as reported by Mexico’s Tourism Minister Miguel Torruco.
The Tianguis Turístico, which gathered businesses from across the tourism industry, “broke all records in terms of business appointments, participation of buyers and representation of nations,” Torruco said, citing preliminary reports.
The Tianguis Turistico saw the best of Mexico come together to discuss the future of the sector and attract investment. Here a man advertises tourism on the Yucatán Peninsula. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro)
Companies and local governments used the four-day event to announce new tourism-related initiatives and products and traveling opportunities.
According to Torruco, preliminary sales numbers reached US $68.5 million — an 87% increase from the 2022 fair held in Acapulco.
“The event marked a milestone for tourism in the country and in the history of the tourism fair itself,” Torruco said.
Ninety countries from five continents attended the event, involving 2,338 buyers and 1,383 companies, the ministry said. The fair, which allows registered participants to make appointments in advance with business participants at the event, saw close to 90,000 such appointments scheduled.
Organizers attributed that number to a 34% increase in people attending the fair as buyers. Torruco said that 53% of those business appointments ended in sales.
Companies and local governments used the four-day event to announce new tourism-related initiatives and products and traveling opportunities, including announcements about new airline routes and the use of technology in the tourism industry, as we highlight below.
Viva Aerobus announces new Querétaro-Los Cabos flight
With three flights per week starting in July, the airline Viva Aerobus will launch a new route from Querétaro to Los Cabos, Baja California Sur.
Viva Aerobus also anticipates the delivery of 28 more A321 aircraft. (Viva Aerobus)
According to the government of Querétaro, Los Cabos is one of the most requested destinations by airport users. Authorities anticipate about 45,000 people per year will fly the new route.
“[The new route] will allow us to place and promote Querétaro in a market that, naturally, we do not have. With this new flight, Querétaro will be able to offer new travelers all our products,” Minister of Tourism for Querétaro Adriana Vega said during the announcement.
The route will use Airbus A320 aircraft, which can accommodate up to 186 passengers.
ChatGPT recommends Mexico as a tourist destination
Chairman of the Board of Directors at Grupo Carso Carlos Slim Domit (billionaire Carlos Slim Helú’s son) told audiences in a keynote address at the fair that he had tried out Open AI’s ChatGPT software and that it had good things to say about Mexico.
Slim Domit said he’d asked the chatbot the question: “Do you recommend visiting Mexico?”
The chatbot responded in the affirmative, he said.
Chat GPT says Mexico is one of the best tourist destinations in the world. (David Vives / Unsplash)
The AI (artificial intelligence) software told Slim Domit that Mexico has “a lot to offer.”
From modern cities to historical towns, mountains and seaside villages, ChatGPT said, “there’s something for everyone in Mexico,” and “Mexico is a great place to go if you’re looking to travel somewhere.”
Slim Domit said that technology is no longer an option but a necessity in the tourism industry and that it’s imperative to explore ways of using it. Tourism companies, he said, should use artificial intelligence to create personalized experiences for their clients.
Mexican states promote medical tourism
The northern, Bajío and western regions of the country are developing strategies to take advantage of increasing medical tourism.
In an interview with newspaper El Economista during the fair, San Miguel de Allende’s head of economic and tourism development Tania Castillo said that the most important destinations in the country are experiencing an economic boom in this sector. Her city is getting involved as well, she said.
Mexico is rapidly becoming a destination for medical tourists, with modern facilities designed to attract people from across the world. (archdaily.mx)
Castillo cited the Guanajuato city’s planned Alquería WTC San Miguel de Allende, a World Trade Center campus that in addition to businesses, will include a dedicated medical tourism hospital — which Castillo claimed will be the first such facility of its kind in Mexico.
Construction is anticipated to start this spring.
Medical tourism for cosmetic procedures is in increasing demand in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, particularly from Canadian and U.S. citizens, said Sujey Cardenas, head of public relations for Puerto Vallarta’s Tourism Promotion Trust.
Baja California is also a hot spot for medical tourism. About 10% of tourism in the state belongs to this category, and double-digit rates are expected for the rest of 2023. Tijuana and Ensenada are building 15 complexes to accommodate this new breed of tourist.
The new factory in Nuevo Leon will produce millions of car sets by 2025 under the brand Faurecia. (@_JosePerales/Twitter)
The French auto part manufacturer Forvia has opened a new US $147 million plant in the northern state of Nuevo León.
Forvia, which produces car seating and interiors for major international brands, hopes that the creation of their new Apodaca plant will allow for the export of more than 2 million full sets of car seats per year in 2025.
The opening ceremony was attended by dignitaries from the government of Nuevo León. (Forvia)
The company is aiming to double its manufacturing capacity by the end of 2023. Clients of Forvia include the automakers Volvo and Stellantis.
“This new facility positions us to deliver exceptional value to our customers and enhances our mission to pioneer technology for mobility experiences that matter to people,” said Nik Endrud, Forvia executive vice president of the Americas.
The company believes that the plant’s opening, under the Faurecia brand, represents a “true milestone” for the business. Forvia is currently ranked as the global leader in the industry, with a 16% market share.
A number of state dignitaries were in attendance at the opening ceremony, including Governor Samuel García and Nuevo León Economy Minister Ivan Rivas.
The new factory is yet another development in the nearshoring boom that has seen significant investment in Mexico as a global manufacturing center — especially the state of Nuevo León.
The state has rapidly become a hub for the automotive industry, according to Rivas. One hundred twenty-five of its recent high-level investments have been in the sector.
Like other developments opening in the region, the new factory will also adhere to modern sustainability standards, to help fight the chronic water shortages that have plagued much of Mexico.
“Our investment supports key sustainability initiatives in the fields of bioclimatic design, energy efficiency, and water recovery. This is why we are pleased to share with you that this new plant is certified as a green building,” said Jean-Paul Michel, executive vice president of the interiors division, told the business publication Mexico Industry.
It was another eventful week at President López Obrador's morning press conferences, covering everything from the tragedy in Ciudad Juárez to the Supreme Court blocking the "plan B" electoral reform. (Galo Cañas Rodríguez / Cuartoscuro.com)
President López Obrador triggered an outburst of positive and negative responses when he highlighted the natural beauty of Quintana Roo and the construction of two government infrastructure projects in the same social media post last Saturday.
“It’s not a dream, it’s a nightmare for nature,” one Twitter user wrote in response to AMLO’s publication of a photo showing “beautiful little lagoons close to where we’re building the new Tulum airport.”
Bellas lagunitas cercanas a donde estamos construyendo el nuevo aeropuerto de Tulum. Llevamos dos días de supervisión de avances del Tren Maya, que es como un sueño que pronto, muy pronto, se volverá realidad. pic.twitter.com/cBIdt3xOVE
AMLO shared this image of lagoons near the site of the new Tulum airport last Sunday
In the same post, the president said that the Maya Train railroad project – which will connect cities and towns in five southeastern states – is “like a dream that … very soon will become reality.”
The dichotomy between the comments praising the president for his commitment to carrying out transformative infrastructure projects and the remarks accusing him of defiling Mexico’s natural environment was not surprising.
Politically speaking, Mexico is a divided country, and that polarization is perhaps more evident on social media than anywhere else. Much of the public debate, online and offline, stems from AMLO’s discourse at his lengthy weekday morning press conferences, or mañaneras, exercises in oratorical – and auditory – stamina held mostly in the National Palace.
Monday
During the weekly update on the construction of the Maya Train railroad, the head of the National Tourism Promotion Fund reported that “significant progress” has been made on the 234-kilometer section between Escárcega and Calkiní in the state of Campeche.
“There are 80 kilometers of tracks completed and we already have 100% of the ballast, rails and sleepers required,” said Javier May Rodríguez.
“The drainage works are 70% complete, the 10 viaducts under construction are 60% complete and we already have half of the 148 pedestrian, vehicle and wildlife crossings we need. … All this has created 12,000 jobs,” he said.
“Traveling in the train along section 2 will allow [passengers] to visit and enjoy emblematic places like the historic city of Campeche, the Champotón River, the archaeological zone of Edzná and the Hecelchakán Museum, to name some of the marvelous places in Campeche. And of course … [passengers] will be able to enjoy the gastronomy and handicrafts of our amigos y amigas campechanos,” May added.
Governor of Campeche, Layda Sansores, speaks at the morning press conference on Monday. (@LaydaSansores/Twitter)
During a theatrical appearance before reporters, Campeche Governor Layda Sansores – an ardent AMLO ally – declared that the ambitious 1,500-kilometer-long railroad will be completed on time in December because the project was “predestined.”
“Its destiny was written on the bark of the ancient ceiba trees,” she said.
“… Let the thunder of the train reverberate on the [Yucatán] Peninsula. Let’s get on the train – we’ll discover the splendor and power of our Mayan culture, we’ll find another world of redemption and hope,” the governor gushed.
“Thank you, Andrés, president, for giving us the opportunity to write a line in the long history of peaceful and eternal battles you’ve led. Andrés Manuel, son of corn and restorative lightning, son of the four cardinal points, he who carries 32 suns in his soul, never forget how much your people love you.”
Justice Javier Laynez in court in 2019. ( ISAAC ESQUIVEL /CUARTOSCURO.COM)
“It’s thought that this justice overstepped the mark, went too far,” López Obrador said.
“… There can be interpretations of the constitution, of laws, but in reality that’s what he did. The important thing is to know why [judges] act in this way. I believe that the majority of people know that it’s not a legal matter, it’s a political matter and I would say a commercial matter because what they don’t want is for the electoral law to be approved or declared constitutional. What they don’t want is for the salaries of the high-ranking National Electoral Institute [INE] officials to be reduced,” he said.
Responding to another question, AMLO praised Constellation Brands for accepting the result of a 2020 referendum on a brewery the United States company planned to build in Mexicali, Baja California.
“They’re [now] building the brewery in Veracruz, near the port. … The owners of this company behaved very well because they were surprised to some extent, deceived by previous authorities who gave them permits when there was no water available,” he said.
“They thought there wasn’t going to be a problem but clearly there was a problem because the people of Mexicali didn’t agree. The consultation was done, the people reaffirmed that they didn’t want the brewery, we spoke with the owners … and they accepted the move … to a place where there is water.”
In response to the final question of the presser – What’s your schedule today, Mr. President? – López Obrador revealed that he is not as au fait with his day-to-day agenda as one might expect.
“We have some things, I don’t remember well,” he said reluctantly before flashing a broad grin.
Tuesday
López Obrador acknowledged at the beginning of his presser that 39 migrants had died in a fire in a government-run detention center in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. It appeared that migrants set mattresses alight when they found out they were going to be deported or moved, he said.
“It’s very sad that this happened,” AMLO said after noting that the names and nationalities of the victims had not yet been established.
(Migrants from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Venezuela and Colombia were subsequently confirmed to have died.)
Education Minister Leticia Ramírez later announced that the government was launching “a campaign against addictions” that would be mainly directed at middle school and high school students
At least three days a week students will receive information from teachers about the harm caused by drug use, she said.
Ramírez ran through a list of brief but blunt messages that will be conveyed to students during the campaign: “fentanyl will kill you straight away; methamphetamine hooks you; vapes really are toxic; cannabis harms you; tobacco affects you and everyone; alcohol, be careful, don’t start; benzodiazepines aren’t a game.”
Education Minister Leticia Ramírez at the Tuesday press conference. (Gob MX)
After López Obrador expressed his support for the campaign, Culture Minister Alejandra Frausto took center stage and reported that 11,505 Mexican archaeological pieces have been repatriated since the federal government took office in late 2018.
“We want to thank … the management of museums in other countries [and] citizens who had these assets in their homes for some reason – maybe they inherited them, but they became aware that they don’t belong to them,” she said.
Frausto also expressed gratitude to the governments of European countries that have returned artifacts to Mexico, including that of Italy, which recently handed over 43 pieces.
Alejandra Frausto at the Wednesday morning press conference. (@AleFrausto/Twitter)
Back in his element in front of a gaggle of eager reporters, AMLO declared that his government needs to “continue seeking the purification of public life” after 36 years of neoliberal policies implemented by the past six governments.
“We’re talking about 1983 to 2018. … This predominance of neoliberalism … penetrated deeply … [in] all aspects of public life,” he said during a prolonged response to a question about the need for judicial reform.
Among other remarks, AMLO said that “the family is the most important social security institution” in Mexico because of the support members can provide to each other and noted that he had a “very good” meeting on Monday with the lawyer for Pedro Castillo, the former president of Peru who was ousted by that country’s Congress late last year.
“He’s defending the case well. He explained to me that there is no legal foundation for what they did. In other words they acted at the margins of – and above – the law,” he said.
Wednesday
At the top of his presser, López Obrador expressed his condolences to the family members of the men who were killed in the Ciudad Juárez detention center fire and to the residents and governments of the Latin American countries from which they came.
According to reports, migrants set fire to mattresses after being informed they would be deported. (Juan Ortega/Cuartoscuro)
He said that the Federal Attorney General’s Office was conducting an investigation and pledged that his government wouldn’t “hide the facts.”
“In the face of this [tragedy] that is so painful and so sad for us, we’re not going to act unfairly in any way,” AMLO said.
After various officials presented a bombardment of statistics, including ones related to pensions for seniors (11.2 million recipients), the “Youths Building the Future” apprenticeship scheme (2.6 million participants in the past four years) and the government’s “Internet for Wellbeing” program (20,508 rural localities connected), fake news finder Ana García Vilchis made her regular Wednesday appearance to present another edition of her “Who’s who in the Lies of the Week” segment.
After defending the integrity of the government’s scholarship scheme for students in the wake of a report that questioned the whereabouts of more than 1.6 billion pesos in funding, she took aim at “opposition media outlets” that have reported on flooding at the new Pemex refinery on the Tabasco coast.
“Time and again they falsify information, publishing photos that don’t correspond, doing photomontage, reviving old lies and rehashing false information – a complete cocktail of disinformation,” García said.
She also denounced reports that claimed that Wells Fargo wouldn’t allow remittances to be sent to the government’s Bank of Well-Being due to the latter’s lack of anti-money laundering controls.
Reentering the fray, AMLO directed some of his ire at senior judges and high-ranking electoral officials who earn “double or triple” his salary (about US $9,600 per month gross) despite the constitution saying that no public servant can make more than the president.
“They violated the constitution through an injunction, legal chicanery,” he said before noting that he did succeed in eliminating exorbitant pensions for past presidents.
“How much did they give Fox, Calderón, Salinas, all of them? About 5 million pesos a month,” López Obrador said.
During a subsequent engagement with a storied mañanera figure, a reporter known as Lord Molécula (real name Carlos Pozos), AMLO’s mind suddenly turned to Mexican cinema and specifically a new film called ¡Que viva México!
“I was watching a movie, a churro [dud] against us, … [a film] for the consumption of the conservatives,” he said before going on to explain why he isn’t a big fan of cinema.
“Que Viva México” poster on the back of a Mexico City bus. (@QueVivaMexico__/Twitter)
“I regret [not being a fan] because [cinema] is something exceptional, it’s art, … but perhaps due to the reality in which I live I don’t need more drama. My reality, my experience, is very rich,” the president said.
Among other remarks, AMLO once again asserted that Mexico is a largely safe country as he sought to refute recent comments regarding cartel control made by members of U.S. President Joe Biden’s cabinet.
“I maintain that I, as president, and any person can go to any part of [Mexico’s] national territory,” he said. “Yes, there are more risks in some regions and cities than others, but life goes on unchanged in the entire country.”
Thursday
Members of the Consejo de la Communicación (Communication Council) – a private sector group that aims to raise awareness about social problems and help solve them – were guests of honor at López Obrador’s Thursday press conference.
Francisco Casanueva Pérez, who assumed the presidency of the council at the mañanera, declared that Mexico is facing “significant economic, social and environmental challenges” and asked the president to “allow us to continue joining forces with the federal government” to tackle them.
“We have a shared vision of achieving the wellbeing of society and the progress of our country,” Casanueva said. “Working together – the public sector and the private sector – we can reach our goals.”
Continuing the love-in, López Obrador said that the work of the council – which ran a pro-vaccine campaign during the pandemic and has supported other public health initiatives – is “highly renowned.”
“I want to thank [the council members] for what they did for our people in very difficult times, when we were facing the COVID pandemic in very difficult and sad circumstances. We all joined together and managed to save many lives,” he said. “… This is a council with a social dimension, a civic dimension.”
AMLO with members of the Communication Council at the Thursday press conference. (Gob MX)
Before opening up his presser to questions, López Obrador ran through a range of economic data, highlighting low unemployment, wage growth for formal sector workers, the strength of the peso and record-high remittances, among other favorable pieces of information.
He acknowledged that inflation is a “concern,” but stressed that the scourge is now declining.
During his engagement with reporters, AMLO noted that he had spoken with National Immigration Institute director Francisco Garduño since the detention center fire, but offered no details about the conversation. Asked whether Garduño would remain in his position, the president said that the government would wait for “the result of the investigation” before making any decision.
He later turned his mind to the importance of eating well and exercising. Eating a healthy diet and doing sport is “preventative medicine,” said the 69-year-old heart attack survivor.
“And prevention is better than cure. … We can have specialist hospitals but the best thing is for people not to get sick and we can achieve that with good eating habits, with exercise, by looking after ourselves and that’s why we have this [healthy eating] campaign,” he said.
“… There are other important issues. Water, for example, is extremely important,” AMLO added.
“… We already have problems with a shortage of water in the country and we have to look after water, both surface and subterranean water. There are areas in the country with water stress – there’s no water in other words,” he said.
Friday
Right off the bat, AMLO was asked about the election of Guadalupe Taddei Zavala as president of the National Electoral Institute (INE). He promptly noted that her election and that of three new electoral councilors occurred via sortition, or selection by lottery.
Gudadalupe Taddei, the new president of the INE. (IEE Sonora)
Compared to the “bad habit of dividing the positions between the parties, this is a more democratic way of choosing,” he said. “In ancient Greece this method was used as well, it was part of democracy.”
López Obrador went on to describe Taddei – who has family links to the government – as an “experienced, professional and honest” woman who is “incapable” of acting like outgoing INE chief Lorenzo Córdova, a noted foe of the president. He dismissed a suggestion that the INE was being taken over by the ruling Morena party.
The president was later asked about his exhortation on Monday for citizens not to vote for “the conservatives.”
The INE ruled on Thursday that his remark threatened equity in upcoming elections in México state and Coahuila and ordered the removal of the relevant section of his mañanera from the internet.
AMLO charged he didn’t do anything wrong, although the government has removed Monday’s presser from its websites and social media pages.
“To say ‘not one for vote for conservatism’ is not to say ‘not one vote for PRIAN,'” he said, using a hybrid acronym for the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, and the National Action Party, or PAN, political allies that are sometimes accused of being one and the same.
AMLO discusses immigration policy at his Friday press conference. (Gob MX)
“If they put on the [conservative] jacket, that’s another thing. There’s not a formal conservative party, right?”
The president put politics aside to discuss the Ciudad Juárez tragedy, noting that he would travel to the border city and meet with the doctors treating the injured migrants.
“I’m going to have a meeting with the doctors to ensure they don’t lack anything, so that we can save lives. That’s the essential thing now,” he said.
“… This case has been very painful for a lot of people. And I confess it has pained me a lot, it has hurt me. I’ve had difficult moments [as president], the most difficult was the explosion in Tlahuelilpan,” AMLO said, referring to the 2019 petroleum pipeline blast in Hidalgo that claimed well over 100 lives.
“That was the hardest event, the one that affected me the most emotionally. And then this, this moved me, it broke my soul.”
By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)
