Mexiconews

Mexico’s federal government on Thursday presented a new medication purchasing model aimed at ensuring the availability of medications in the nation’s public health system. Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Clark García outlined the new model at President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning press conference, saying that the new system would manage the acquisition of pharmaceuticals in an efficient and cost-effective way. Mexico’s Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Clark García outlines a new medications purchasing system for the nation’s government-run medical facilities. (Daniel Augusto/Cuartoscuro) He explained that: The Health Ministry will be in charge of the entire process. Public health care providers, including IMSS and ISSSTE, will submit their medication and medical supplies requirements to the Health Ministry. The Health Ministry will review and “validate” their requests. State-owned medical company Birmex will make a “consolidated purchase” of required medications and medical supp...

The Mexican economy grew more than expected in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024, expanding 1.5% in annual terms and 1% compared to the second quarter, according to official preliminary data. The national statistics agency INEGI also reported Wednesday that GDP increased 1.4% annually in the first nine months of 2024 in seasonally adjusted terms and 1.7% in non-adjusted figures. The primary sector, which includes agriculture and livestock, showed the strongest growth in Q3. (Government of Mexico) The annual economic growth rate for Mexico in Q3 was 0.2 percentage points above the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg . The quarter-over-quarter rate also came in slightly higher than the 0.65% consensus forecast of economists polled by Bloomberg. The 1% growth compared to the April-June quarter was the best result for the Mexican economy since the second quarter of 2023. Quarter-over-quarter growth in Q2 of 2024 was just 0.2%. All three sectors of the economy grew in b...

A new study by the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) predicts that axolotls will completely disappear from their native Xochimilco canals in 2025. The axolotl is an endangered Mexican salamander endemic to the lakes and wetlands of the Valley of Mexico (today Mexico City). Its remaining habitat is limited to the canals running through the chinampas (artificial islands) of Xochimilco, one of Mexico City’s southernmost boroughs.  However, experts warn they could completely disappear from the wild next year. A captive ajolotl with leucistic coloring. (Pixabay) “In 1998, there were 6,000 axolotls per square kilometer,” Luis Zambrano González from the Biology Institute of the UNAM, said in November 2023 during the presentation of the Adoptaxolotl 2024 campaign. “The last census was carried out in 2014 and there were only 36 [per square kilometer].”   Later, in 2019, an assessment by the International Union for the Conservation of Species found only between 50...

Environment Minister Alicia Bárcena described her plans to expand Mexico’s protected lands through partnerships with local governments and Indigenous communities at the Conference of the Parties on Biological Diversity (COP) in Cali, Colombia. The world’s leading biodiversity conference, COP’s 16th edition has been dubbed “The People’s COP,” as it seeks to elevate the role of Indigenous peoples and local communities as guardians of nature. 114 environment ministers from around the world gathered at #COP16Colombia to make #PeaceWithNature and meet the targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Framework. The will is strong, but it needs to be stronger to stop the loss of biodiversity on Earth . pic.twitter.com/njqw2NaqiY — COP16 COLOMBIA (@COP16Oficial) October 30, 2024 Speaking at the conference on Tuesday, Bárcena said that Mexico is committed to implementing urgent measures to protect 153 million hectares of land and sea by 2030, equivalent to 30% of Mexican territory, a goal...

Federal security officials on Tuesday highlighted a decline in homicides and more than 800 arrests since President Claudia Sheinbaum took office on Oct. 1. National Public Security System (SNSP) chief Marcela Figueroa Franco and Security Minister Omar García Harfuch both presented data at the morning press conference of Sheinbaum, who was sworn in as Mexico’s first female president exactly four weeks ago . During Sheinbaum’s Tuesday morning press conference, Security Minister Omar García Harfuch said that authorities have this month seized 834 firearms, 33,800 kilograms of “different kinds of drugs” and more than 46,000 fentanyl pills. (Galo Cañas/Cuartoscuro) They attempted to portray a positive picture of Mexico’s security situation, but the reality remains that various parts of the country are plagued by high levels of violent crime. The security update on Tuesday came three weeks after the new federal government presented its national security strategy , based on four key pil...

The Mexican peso depreciated against the US dollar on Tuesday to close above 20 to the greenback for a second consecutive day. The USD:MXN rate at the close of trading was 20.08, according to the Bank of Mexico. The nearing U.S. presidential election appears to be taking the wind out of the peso. (Kamala Harris/X) The peso depreciated around 0.25% on Tuesday after closing at 20.03 to the dollar on Monday. It was the third consecutive trading day that the peso lost ground. Next Tuesday’s presidential election in the United States is one factor causing the currency to decline. Polls continue to show an extremely close race, but there are “growing bets” that former U.S. president and Republican Party candidate Donald Trump will win, the El Economista newspaper reported. Trump has threatened to impose hefty tariffs on vehicles made in Mexico if he defeats Democratic Party candidate and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris next Tuesday. Mexican bank Banco Base said Tuesday that there...

Mexico City police discovered a narco-tunnel while conducting a series of raids in the southern borough of Xochimilco that netted the arrest of 27 people and the confiscation of a large quantity of illegal drugs. The raids were part of an ongoing operation that began on Oct. 10 to address complaints about an increase in street-level drug sales in the borough, according to the newspaper El Universal. NARCOPASADIZO en XOCHIMILCO Es un túnel hallado en un predio de vendedrogas en @XochimilcoAl Conectaba de una casa a otra y luego llevaba a una azotea. Los equipos especiales de @SSC_CDMX lo hallaron y detuvieron a 3 vendedores. @FiscaliaCDMX indaga. Imágenes #C4EnAlerta pic.twitter.com/Kt2OuA5mCM — Carlos Jiménez (@c4jimenez) October 29, 2024 The discovery of the tunnel was made when Mexico City Public Security Ministry (SSC) officials carried out five simultaneous raids in the borough known for its popular floating gardens, which are a major tourism attraction in Xochimilco ...

The federal government has announced over 400 million dollars in reconstruction and rehabilitation funds for homes in Guerrero and Oaxaca that were devastated by the recent passage of Hurricane John. According to a census by the Welfare Ministry, more than 40,000 homes were damaged by the storm, impacting approximately 153,000 people.  Acapulco, Guerrero saw nearly one meter of accumulated rainfall from Hurricane John, causing severe flooding around the resort city. (Carlos Alberto Carbajal/Cuartoscuro) On Oct. 27, President Sheinbaum visited Acapulco, where she declared the state of emergency in Guerrero following Hurricane John concluded.  “Today we can say that the emergency is over and we are moving on to the next stage. This does not mean that we are done here. There is the clean-up aid, and then, depending on the results of the census, we will give subsequent financial support and even more support for housing,” Sheinbaum said during a press conference .  Th...

Sixteen people were injured on Saturday when a vehicle plowed into a crowd gathered outside the Guadalajara Cathedral in the historic center of the Jalisco capital. Video footage shows an allegedly stolen SUV ramming into people in front of the cathedral on Saturday night. Most if not all of the injured were pro-life activists who had just completed a walk through the streets of Guadalajara and were about to start a prayer session. The Guadalajara government said on social media that police arrested the man “allegedly responsible” for injuring the 16 people, among whom were children. According to Guadalajara Government Secretary Manuel Romo, the man, reportedly aged in his 30s, was under the influence of drugs. In the video footage, two people are seen chasing the vehicle, one of whom is apparently the owner. A child was in the stolen vehicle as it hit the people gathered outside the cathedral, Romo said Saturday. The Guadalajara government said that an individual allegedly stol...

Mexico remains on track to have a record-breaking year for export revenue in 2024, despite stagnant earnings in September compared to last year. Mexican exports were worth US $455.71 billion in the first nine months of the year, according to preliminary data published on Monday , a 3.2% increase compared to the same period of 2023. Mexico exported goods worth US $455.71 billion in the first nine months of the 2024. (Shutterstock) Export revenue totaled just over $593 billion last year , a record high. Between January and September of 2024, Mexico earned an average of $50.63 billion in export revenue per month, putting it on track to exceed an annual total of $600 billion for the first time ever. Mexico’s expenditure on imports also increased in the first nine months of 2024, and at a slightly higher pace than the year-over-year growth in export revenue. Mexico’s deficit with its trade partners around the word increased 11% in annual terms between January and September to reach ...

Nineteen people were killed and six others were injured when a bus crashed into a detached semi-trailer on a highway in the central state of Zacatecas, Mexico. The passenger bus was traveling from the Pacific coast state of Nayarit to the northern border city of Ciudad Juárez when the accident occurred early on Saturday morning. There were only six survivors of the bus crash, which was caused by a runaway trailer on the Zacatecas-Aguascalientes highway . (ContrapropuestaMX/X) The bus, operated by Omnibus de México, was approaching mile marker 74 on the Zacatecas-Aguascalientes highway when it collided with the back of a trailer carrying corn that had come loose from the tractor truck. The bus careened off the highway and rolled down a ravine, as seen in images shared on social media. First responders and security personnel — including soldiers and members of the National Guard — arrived on the scene and sifted through the wreckage looking for survivors, but the damage to the...

More than half of Mexico’s 32 states will see freezing temperatures on Monday and Tuesday as cold front No. 6 enters Mexico from the northwest. The National Meteorological Service (SMN) warned that residents, particularly of Mexico’s northwest region, can expect significant drops in temperature throughout the week. The weather system will bring powerful wind gusts between 60 to 80 kilometers per hour, kicking up dust storms (known locally as “tolvaneras”) across Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Chihuahua and Coahuila.   Snow and sleet are possible in high peaks including the Popocatépetl, Iztaccihuatl and Pico de Orizaba volcanoes. (Wikimedia Commons) Beginning Monday, mountainous areas of Baja California, Chihuahua, Durango, México state, Tlaxcala and Puebla can expect temperatures between -5 and 0 degrees Celsius.  The following states can expect temperatures between 0 and 5 degrees Celsius: Sonora  Coahuila Nuevo León Zacatecas San Luis Potos...