SEPTEMBER 2006 EDITION ARCHIVE
Legal Updates
New Attorney General for Taxpayer Defense
On September 4, 2006 the Organic Law of the Attorney General for Taxpayer Defense was published in the Official Journal of the Federation (Diario Oficial de la Federación), which has as its purpose regulating the organization and functioning of the office of the Attorney General for Taxpayer Defense, in order to guarantee the right of taxpayers to be treated fairly in tax matters at the federal level through advising, representation and defense; receipt of complaints; and the issuance... [Read More]Use of Neutral Investment by Foreign Investors in Mexico
Mexico’s current Foreign Investment Law (FIL) establishes, as a general rule, that except in the case of activities exclusively reserved to the Mexican Nation, foreign private capital may participate at a one hundred percent (100%) level in the capital of Mexican entities. Notwithstanding such, there are still various activities for which the direct participation of foreign capital is either prohibited or restricted to a pre-determined limit. In some of these cases, however, the FIL allows... [Read More]Business & Politics Outlook
Felipe Calderon. President-Elect of Mexico
The Supreme Chamber of the Electoral Tribunal of Justice of the Mexican Federation (TEPJF) formally declared the PAN candidate Felipe Calderon Hinojosa, President-elect. The official tally stated that Felipe Calderon Hinojosa received 14,916,927 votes on election day, July 2nd, while the candidate of the Por el Bien de Todos (For the Good of All) coalition, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, received 14,683,096 votes, a winning margin of 233,831. One day after the TEPJF decided the validity of the July... [Read More]Historic Sixth Annual Report to the Mexican Nation Given by President Vicente Fox
The Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) legislators took possession of the dais of the Mexican Chamber of Deputies and did not allow President Vicente Fox to give his annual State of the Nation Report on September 1st. Fox appeared at the Chamber of Deputies for a brief 17 minutes, long enough to determine that conditions would not allow him to take the podium, so he hand delivered his written report as required by the Constitution and returned to the Presidential residence at Los Pinos. Parliamentary... [Read More]Reaction on International Markets
Standard & Poor’s (S&P), the financial evaluation firm, confirmed its investment rating grade for debt issued by the Mexican government after the Federal Electoral Tribunal announced Felipe Calderon Hinojosa as the legal winner of the July 2nd Presidential election. In the same optimistic tone, Mexico’s country risk, as measured by the EMBI+ JP Morgan Index, fell to 107 points, five points lower than its previous rating. This is in contrast to the August 3rd rating, which came... [Read More]Favorable Expectations for Economic Growth
In accordance with a poll of economic experts conducted by the Banco de Mexico, economic growth forecasts for 2006 were raised to 4.46%. This poll was taken during the month of August. Upon presenting the results of its poll, the Banco de Mexico stated that its expectations for economic growth during the next year were raised to 3.53%, slightly higher than its estimate of this past July, in which it was stated to be 3.40%. With respect to inflation, those polled by the Mexican Central Bank predicted... [Read More]Economic Indicators
Pesos/Dollar Exchange Rate
The quoted exchange rate as of September 7, 2006 was $11.10 pesos per dollar.Mexican Stock Exchange
The Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) closed on September 7, 2006 at 20,833.23 points.Interest Rates
On September 7, 2006, the Average Interbank Interest Rate (TIEE) for a 28-day period was at 7.30%.Feature Website
www.sre.gob.mx
We recommend our readers visit the web page of the Mexican Department of Foreign Relations (Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores or SRE) at www.sre.org.mx, where they may obtain information on the organization, transmittals, programs and international treaties entered into by Mexico.