By MARK LORENZANA

Foreign direct Investment (FDI) in Mexico had a strong annual growth of 49.2 percent in the first half of this year, helping the country accumulate $27.5 billion, according to preliminary figures from Mexico’s Economy Secretariat.

According to a statement by the Secretariat of the Economy, the figure reflects “extraordinary movements, related to the merger of Televisa with Univision and the restructuring of Aeroméxico.” Combined, these transactions represent $6.8 billion of FDI.

In January of this year, Mexican media giant Grupo Televisa and U.S. Spanish-language broadcaster Univision closed a merger amounting to $4.8 billion, nine months after the two companies reported their intention to combine their media assets. The merger resulted in the Mexican-American media company TelevisaUnivision.

Two months later, in March, Aeroméxico — the flagship air carrier of Mexico — announced that it had completed its financial restructuring process, officially exiting from bankruptcy, which it voluntarily entered in June 2020 in the midst of the airline-industry crisis brought about by the covid-19 pandemic.

Carlos González Tabares, director of economic analysis and stock market strategy for the Monex Financial Group, said that the final figures will have to be reviewed since they are preliminary at the moment, but stated that “the news comes as a pleasant and positive surprise.”

“What also stands out is the investment in the manufacturing sector,” González Tabares said. “Perhaps in the current environment of global uncertainty, Mexico still looks attractive to investors and trading partners, mainly the United States, despite the uncertainty generated by political issues.”

The manufacturing, transportation and mass-media information sectors accounted for a combined 65 percent of the country’s FDI in the first half of 2022, while insurance and financial services accounted for 13 percent. On the other hand, the trade and mining sectors accounted for 6.1 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively.

By country of origin, the United States led the pack of foreign investors, with 39.9 percent of FDI in Mexico, followed by Canada, with 10.3 percent. The rest included Spain, with 6.8 percent, Argentina, with 5.9 percent, the United Kingdom, with 3.3 percent, and Germany, with 2.6 percent.