Mexican Economy Picked Up Speed in the First Quarter Anthony Harrup - Nasdaq
go to original May 20, 2016

Mexican economic growth accelerated in the first quarter, with increases in industrial output, services and agricultural production expanding from the final quarter of 2015, the National Statistics Institute said Friday.

Gross domestic product, a measure of output of goods and services, grew 0.8% seasonally adjusted from the fourth quarter, which translates into an annualized rate of 3.3%. Output was up 2.6% from the first quarter of 2015, limited in part by the Easter holiday week falling in March this year instead of April.

Industrial production rose 1.2% from the fourth quarter, recovering from a decline, but was up just 0.4% from a year before.

"The main driver of growth in the Mexican economy is the domestic market, above all investment and consumption," Deputy Finance Minister Fernando Aportela said at a news conference.

The Finance Ministry lowered growth estimate for this year to a range of 2.2% to 3.2% from its previous 2.6% to 3.6%. The reduction mostly reflects lower expectations for global and U.S. economic growth, while risks remain in oil prices and uncertainty about the pace of U.S. interest-rate increases, Mr. Aportela said.

Government spending cuts and the likelihood of higher Mexican interest rates could also limit growth this year, said Edward Glossop, an emerging- markets economist at Capital economics. "We continue to think that the first quarter may be as good as it gets for Mexico."

Read the rest at Nasdaq

Related: Mexico Cuts 2016 Growth Outlook (Financial Times)

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