Arturo Sanchez and Emir Olivares
Newspaper La Jornada
Saturday December 31, 2022, p. 3
Taking stock of the economic indicators at the end of the year, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador predicted yesterday that the gross domestic product (GDP) could grow at an annual rate of at least 3 percent during the remainder of his administration.
In his usual press conference at the National Palace, he stressed that inflation must continue to be monitored, but stressed that the Mexican economy has been recovering from the 17.8 percent drop in GDP in 2020 as a result of the covid-19 pandemic. 19.
We are not going to bring zero growth in the six-year term, we are going to have growth, even if it is just over one percent per year during our government. It is not a small thing for that drop of 17.8 percent that has not been seen since 1933.
He said that although it can be considered that there is little economic growth, his government is betting on development and a better distribution of that wealth.
Most of the budget is being directed to meet the needs of the poorest people in the country
he assured.
When comparing GDP growth in the third quarter of 2022 with other countries, López Obrador highlighted that with an increase of 0.9 percent, Mexico is above countries such as Italy, Germany or Japan.
Increase to the minimum wage
He celebrated that with the increase in the minimum wage scheduled for January 1, which will go from 172 to 207 pesos a day, his purchasing power will have recovered 90 percent compared to 2018.
Regarding the price of gasoline, he stated that it has dropped, as was his campaign commitment. For example, he said, the liter of Magna dropped 6.8 percent from 2018 to 2022 and went from 23.47 pesos to 22.21, while in the six-year term of Felipe Calderón it had an increase of 22 percent and in that of Enrique Peña Nieto it increased 42.8 percent.
He highlighted that as of December 2022, 21,462,967 workers have been registered at the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), which means 849,431 more positions than before the covid-19 pandemic was declared.
He explained that the average salary of workers registered with the IMSS is 14,718 pesos per month. It’s the highest ever
Held.
After remarking that from November 2018 to December 2022 the peso has appreciated by 4.6 percent against the dollar, he emphasized that Mexico’s main source of income is remittances from compatriots from the United States, which until November totaled 53,000 125 million dollars. This reaches 10 million Mexican families throughout the territory, even in the most remote communities.
explained, and thanked to our countrymen, countrymen, for this great support
.
Record in investment
Foreign direct investment in the third quarter of 2020 totaled 32,147 million dollars, which, he indicated, constitutes a record, adding that Mexico has displaced Canada as the first trading partner of the United States.
He explained that foreign investment will continue to grow, since Mexico has advantages incomparable in the concert of nations
: political stability, competent workers, proximity to the US market and the Mexico-US-Canada Treaty.
