México

January 14th, 2022

VOLTAR

1. Citi will leave consumer banking in Mexico

Citibank will put Banamex’s retail business up for sale based on a new simplified strategy for the region. The Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (SHCP) will oversee the sale to avoid the formation of monopolies and supervise the payment of taxes. This sale includes the bank’s payroll portfolios, credit cards, mortgages, and all its retail branches

Mexico is Citi’s largest international consumer market. In the first three quarters of 2021, the sum of businesses the group would be exiting represented approximately $3.5 billion in revenue. The corporate director of Institutional Development, Economic Studies, and Communication of Citibanamex, Alberto Gómez, stressed that the sale of the bank is not related to the economic prospects of Mexico.

El Financiero: ‘Al mejor postor’: Citi venderá Banamex por completo.

2. National GDP will maintain 3% growth in 2022

The World Bank cut its growth estimate for Mexico’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 5.7% to 5% during 2021. The projections did not change and remain at the 3% forecast for 2022. At the same time, it included a projection for 2023 in which it forecasts growth of 2.2%.

The report highlights that supply chain slodowns are expected to continue during the first half of 2022 while external demand will be predicated on slower growth in the United States. For Latin America, growth will slow to 2.6% in 2022 and then increase slightly to 2.7% in 2023.

El Universal: BM mantiene estimado de 3% para economía en el 2022

3. Industrial activity declines during 2021

Industrial activity in Mexico registered a decline after a shortage of inputs and changes in global supply chains. The Monthly Indicator of Economic Activity registered a decline of 0.1% in November 2021 compared to October according to data from the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (Inegi).

Mining was the only sector that grew. Industrial activity in this sector grew 0.4%. Activity in the manufacturing industry remained stable. Construction and electricity and gas and water registered declines of 0.6 and 1.2% respectively.

El Economista: Actividad industrial en México muestra un estancamiento; la minería avanza modestamente.

4. Mandate revocation process progresses

The National Electoral Institute (INE) reported that there are 1,939,457 valid signatures to carry out the Mandate Revocation exercise and determine if President Andrés Manuel López Obrador will continue with his mandate. In total, the number of signatures reached 70.32% in 14 of the 17 states necessary to start the call.

The entities with the highest totals are Guerrero with 99.4%; Chihuahua with 97.02%; and Oaxaca 82.13%. States that hold elections this year, such as Tamaulipas, Aguascalientes, and Quintana Roo, have also exceeded the minimum required signatures. The call will be presented on February 4 for citizens to vote on April 10, 2022.

Milenio: INE reporta 70.32 por ciento de firmas válidas para revocación de mandato

5. INAI sanctions companies for the use of personal data

The National Institute of Transparency, Access to Information, and Protection of Personal Data (Inai) imposed fines of more than MXN $90,193,016 pesos on individuals who misused personal data. Between January and December 2021, 83 procedures were established for the imposition of sanctions and 46 procedures from other years were fully resolved.

The sector most sanctioned for complaints of non-compliance with data processing was financial and insurance services with a sum of MXN $4,924,267 pesos. Also, the media sector reached MXN $18,555,615 pesos and health services and social assistance about MXN $ 7,353,508 pesos.

El Economista: Inai impone multas a particulares por más de 90 millones de pesos por hacer mal uso de datos personales.