In a government as centralist as that of the 4T, the absence in the presentation of the new industrial policy of the President and the Secretary of the Treasury was highlighted…
Are macroeconomic plans useful? If they really were, the state economy based on central planning would have been victorious in its historical confrontation against market economy capitalism. An economist I worked with used to point out that planning was an act of intellectual pride. The progress of an economy depends on thousands of daily transactions carried out by millions of economic agents that planners try to summarize in an equation.
The one described is the historical and technical background in which the industrial development plan announced by the Secretary of the Economy, Tatiana Clouthier, can be placed. Perhaps the mentioned plan turns out to be useless, but her expedition did offer the official the opportunity for personal brilliance. In this sense, she proclaimed that “in past years it had been an issue ignored by governments that stated that the best industrial policy is the one that does not exist.”
Apparently, Secretary Clouthier and her collaborators have already decided unilaterally and a priori, which are the industrial sectors in which Mexico should have competitive advantages. Those identified as priorities for the new industrial policy: “agribusiness, electronics, electromobility, medical and pharmaceutical services and creative industries.” And furthermore, issued the new policy two years after the end of the six-year term, it is expected that it will allow compliance with “the commitments of the 2030 agenda.” As you can see, they hit the wall with a home run!
The new industrial policy, in addition to indicating what should be the priority sectors, established that work will be carried out under four transversal axes to meet the needs of the industry: “innovation and scientific technological trends; training of human capital for new trends; promotion of regional content and sustainable and sustainable industries”. However, at least judging by the content of the journalistic notes consulted, that is as far as the operational and programmatic content of the proposal. So poor does this front appear, that Clouthier herself barely declared that she will ask for “the support of the Legislature to grant budgetary resources that allow incentives to the productive sectors.”
In a government as centralist as that of the 4T, the absence of President López Obrador and Secretary of the Treasury Ramírez de la O stood out in the presentation of the new industrial policy. Two absences that are very significant. In that sense, why doesn’t Clouthier ask the head of national finance for the required resources?
