By RICARDO CASTILLO
New Dollar Revenues Law
The Mexican Senate approved a bill on Wednesday, Dec. 9, stipulating that all foreign currencies income flowing into Mexico should stay in the nation and not be allowed to be repatriated to the country of its origin.
The board of directors of Mexico’s central bank, Banco de Mexico (Banxico), immediately challenged the bill, claiming it would represent “a threat to international reserves.”
Banxico also said that the law infringes its autonomy since it makes it an obligation for the central bank to purchase all foreign currency, “a highly dangerous move,” as it may reopen doors already closed to money laundering.
The bill was approved by 70 votes in favor and 23 against, with one abstention.
Since the bulk of fresh cash entering Mexico stems from remittances and tourism is dollar-denominated, it will prevent businesses receiving U.S. dollars from sending the money abroad.
As of now, remittances and tourism, Banxico said, represents only 1 percent of Mexico’s total dollar income.
said that he regretted the fact that Banxico’s opinion was not taken into consideration after it had participated in the drafting of the bill in November.
Since the bill still has to be approved at the Mexican Chamber of Deputies, Esquivel said that he hopes the situation will yet be corrected.
Because of this controversy resulting from the new bill, exchange rate analysts said the peso lost ground against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, sliding from 19.85 pesos to the dollar to 20.02 pesos to the dollar.
Business Rift
After the president of the Business Coordination Council (CCE) signed an agreement to continue discussions on the drafting of a bill to control employee outsourcing hiring practices, the leaders of three of the 12-member CCE bluntly rejected the negotiation.
The National Manufacturing Industries Chamber (Canacintra), the National Agribusiness Council (CAN) and the Mexican Employers Confederation (Coparmex) issued the following statement:
“We have decided not to subscribe to the agreement proposed by the federal government because it preserves the idea of prohibiting in a substantial way the subcontracting activity by relegating it only to specialty subcontracting.”
The leaders of the three dissenting organizations said “we reiterate our willingness to maintain open and frank dialogue with the executive branch of the federal government and when. in due time, with each of the chambers of congress in order to achieve a law that prioritizes our position on this subject: regulation, yes, prohibition, no.”
Foreign Agents Bill
The Mexican Senate committee on governance and legislative studies approved a bill proposed by President López Obrador to regulate the presence of foreign police agents in Mexico.
The bill, which still has to be voted on in the floor, annuls immunity for foreign agents when committing a crime or taking any police interdiction action that violates the Mexican Constitution.
AMLO said he sent this bill to Congress “because currently there is no clear framework for these agents to operate in Mexico.”
“We want to resolve this situation and make (operational) rules clear so that (foreign agents) cannot have relations with all the secretariats without specifying the type of mission they are on,” he said.
“This is to say, we want to bring about order.”
The bill is specifically aimed at curtailing U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents conducting investigations in Mexico.
Gay Weddings Legalized
The tiny central Mexican state of Tlaxcala approved a reform to its civil code this week recognizing same-sex marriages, making it now the 22nd state, out 32, that have taken this measure.
The local congress approved the law by 16 votes in favor and three against, following the 2015 mandate of the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) legalizing same-sex marriages.
Though the SCJ declared unconstitutional state legislation banning same sex marriages, there are still 10 states whose congresses refuse to legalize gay weddings.
Inflation Down
Inflation in Mexico for the month of November was down to 3.3 percent, according to the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (Inegi), the lowest rate since June.
Helping to push inflation down was a mild drop in consumer prices, as well as the price of fuels and air transport.
Forecasters predict that the year will close with a 3.63 percent inflation rate, well within the 3 to 4 percent range established by Banxico.
AMLO, a Rolling Stone
López Obrador will continue this coming week his outings to different part of the nation.
Over the weekend, he will be in the state of Oaxaca to oversee road projects along with Governor Alejandro Murat.
Then, On Monday, Dec, 14, and Tuesday, Dec. 15, he will visit the state of Sonora accompanied by Governor Claudia Pavlovich.
In Sonora, AMLO will travel to Bavispe, near where nine dual U.S.-Mexican women and children, member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, were assassinated a year ago.
Robles Cooperates
After a year and a half in jail, former Mexican Social Development (Sedesol) and Agriculture and Territorial (Sedatu) Secretary Rosario Robles decided to collaborate with the Treasury Secretariat’s Unit of Financial Intelligence (UIF) by providing information on how some 8 billion pesos were funneled first to state universities and then to bogus businesses.
Robles, accused of “omission” for not reporting the illegal funding, decided to stop recusing herself and is now willing to name names, among which is that of former Finance Secretary Luis Videgaray, and possibly, former President Enrique Peña Nieto.
Robles has applied for protected witness status, which will allow her to continue her trial under home detention.
Her next day in court is slated for Jan. 15.
…Dec. 11, 2020