TAG: The Americas
In a global political economy characterised largely by trade wars, polarised politics and economic populism, Mexico – despite being substantially affected by all three of these – has managed to remain impressively resilient in the face of what the IMF refers to “as an environment of elevated external and domestic risks”. Externally, the sluggish global economy and the trade war between the US and China coincided with instances throughout 2019 of US President Donald Trump using Twitter to be highly critical of Mexico’s internal and foreign policy. Looking at domestic political issues, at 60% the consistently resilient approval ratings of president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, known as AMLO, are in contrast to the heightened uncertainty with which the business community views his policies.
Continually subdued commodity prices and a humanitarian crisis in neighbouring Venezuela are two of a multitude of challenging external factors affecting the Trinbagonian economy in 2020. As the twin island nation exits recession, business leaders answering OBG’s latest CEO survey have reflected on some of the key issues affecting the country’s current economic trajectory.