(Bloomberg) — An unexpected growth in mining activity boosted Mexico’s industrial production in February, offsetting weaknesses in the manufacturing sector amid concerns about the impact of a potential US recession in the country’s exports.
(Bloomberg) — An unexpected growth in mining activity boosted Mexico’s industrial production in February, offsetting weaknesses in the manufacturing sector amid concerns about the impact of a potential US recession in the country’s exports.
Mexican industrial production rose 0.7% from January, above economists’ median forecast for a 0.2% expansion. Mining output jumped 4.1% in the monthly comparison, but manufacturing contracted 0.5%. Economists see the sector getting hit in the near-term by tighter domestic financial conditions, higher interest rates and a slowing US economy.
“We had a very good start to the year in January, but in the end, we knew that the US economy was going to slow down,” said Janneth Quiroz Zamora, vice president of economic research at Monex Casa de Bolsa, adding that a decline in the production of petroleum-based products also contributed to the contraction of the manufacturing sector.
William Jackson, chief emerging markets economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a research note that a likely US recession is leading to expectations that Mexico’s industrial sector will “struggle over the coming months.”
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