The owner of Grupo Carso and América Móvil assured that “there is a great need for investment” from both US and Mexican companies, since North America “is importing too many goods” from other regions.
“It is necessary to speed up the T-MEC,” he stressed.
He believed that the meeting held the day before by Biden and López Obrador in the White House was “extraordinary”, demonstrated a “great understanding” and served to take steps so that the T-MEC “is very effective”.
“The need and conviction to start making joint investments was seen,” Slim asserted.
Regarding this Wednesday’s forum with businessmen, he celebrated that López Obrador was “positive” and was “open and interested” in an increase in investments.
He also saw a “positive attitude” from US companies in the energy sector, despite tensions earlier this year over López Obrador’s failed constitutional reform that was to limit private sector participation in the electricity market.
He considered that “the most important thing” is that there be “large investments” to generate “a great economic activity, a lot of employment and exports.”
Slim also said that the pressing inflation that much of the world is suffering is “a bit artificial” and is due in part to the decision of European countries not to buy oil from Russia because of the war in Ukraine.
The businessman celebrated that Mexico stopped the rise in gasoline prices by increasing the exploitation of crude oil, something that he considered a “very successful measure.”
Slim considered “very important” the goal of the Government of López Obrador to reach the production of two million barrels per day, and called the modernization of refineries in the country a “good achievement”.
The forum in which López Obrador and Slim participated was organized by the Business Coordinating Council (CCE) and the United States Chamber of Commerce, at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington.
The president of the CCE, Francisco Cervantes, also participated; Mexican businessman Antonio del Valle, the director of Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex), Octavio Romero Oropeza, and representatives of the US energy company Sempra.
The Mexican foreign minister, Marcelo Ebrard; the Mexican Secretary of Economy, Tatiana Clouthier; The US ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, and the US Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, were also at this meeting.
