Category: Regions

The US trade deficit with Mexico widened to $4.8 billion in June, up from $4.5 billion in May, largely as a result of rising oil prices. Mexican exports to the US stood at $14.9 in June, a record-high high, while US exports to Mexico stood at $10.1 billion. The US trade deficit with Mexico stood at $24.5 billion in the six months through June.

Mobile telecommunications giant America Movil, owned by Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim, bought Peruvian mobile telecom operator TIM Peru for $505 million. The deal comes on the heels of America Movil´s purchase of Chilean mobile phone operator Smartcom earlier this month. American Movil bought BellSouth´s mobile assets in Latin America last year for $5.85 billion.

In Friday’s LatinFinance Daily Briefing we incorrectly reported that Mexican cellphone operator América Móvil had bought BellSouth´s mobile assets in Latin America for $5.85 billion last year. In fact, BellSouth sold to Spain’s Telefónica. We apologize for the error.

Mexican President Vicente Fox may concede to sugar farmers’ demands and sign legislation that would help keep prices of the commodity from falling, Agriculture Minister Javier Usabiaga said. Thousands of sugar growers from 15 states began blocking the entrance to the agriculture ministry in Mexico City two days ago. The legislation, which Fox had previously promised to veto, would bring back a formula for setting prices mills pay for sugar.

Mexican President Vicente Fox may veto a bill approved by congress to reduce taxes on state-owned oil monopoly Petroleos Mexicanos, said a presidential spokesman. Fox is concerned the bill, which Mexico´s finance ministry has estimated will lower Pemex’s annual taxes by $2.4 billion, will reduce tax revenue too much. In the first six months of this year taxes on Pemex accounted for 35 percent of the government’s $88 billion in revenue.

Mexican wireless phone operator America Movil bought Chilean telecoms group Smartcom from Spain´s Endesa for $505 million. America Movil, owned by Mexican magnate Carlos Slim, said the purchase expands its client base in Chile by 1.7 million subscribers. The company has been snatching up companies throughout South America and now has 74 million cell phone subscribers throughout Latin America. In Mexico, the company operates under the brand Telcel and has 32.2 million clients.

Mexico’s state-owned oil giant Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) posted a net profit of $179 million in the second quarter, with sales up 14 percent year-on-year to $20.9 billion. The company paid $12.9 billion in taxes to the Mexican government, up 16 percent. The average price of exported Mexican crude stood at a record high of $47.90 per barrel, higher than the $27 per barrel envisaged in the government´s budget.

Mexico sold $189 million of peso bonds set to mature in 2024 and priced to yield 9.70 percent. The country has reduced its annual inflation rate to 4.33 percent at the end of June from as high as 5.43 percent last November, raising investor confidence and helping yields on 20-year debt drop from as high as 11.18 percent in April of this year.