Economy

With a GDP of $1.26trn, Mexico is the second-largest economy in Latin America after Brazil and one of the most liberalised in the region. Though economic growth has been slow, ranging from 2% to 3% during much of the past decade, a series of reforms introduced by the government of Enrique Peña Nieto are expected to accelerate the pace of economic development in the medium term. While initial investor and market excitement over the structural reforms has been tempered by low oil prices and a degree of nervousness over the potential effects of monetary tightening in the US, Mexico is set for growth in 2015, with the economy expected to expand by 3%, according to the IMF, following estimated GDP growth of 2.1% in 2014.

This chapter includes interviews with Ildefonso Guajardo Villarreal (IGV), Minister of Economy; Luis Videgaray Caso, Minister of Finance and Public Credit; Francisco N González Díaz, Director-General, ProMéxico; and Juan Pardinas, Director General, Mexican Institute for Competitiveness.