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Since enacting a constitutional change defining the right to education in 2013, Mexico has been working to implement sector reforms to enhance the national school system. As the domestic economy is primarily focused on technical export manufacturing, the reforms aim to strengthen the primary and secondary education system to increase the flow of skilled candidates to university and into the workforce. Education reform continues taking the first basic steps towards advances to modernise curricula and reduce bureaucratic inefficiencies. Successes include securing the long-awaited support of the teachers’ unions for the integration of a testing system that will hold public school teachers to a higher standard. Experts agree, however, that continuity and support for the reform process must be maintained if these steps are going to be reflected as lasting gains in the system. This chapter features an interview with David Calderón Martín del Campo, President, Mexicanos Primero.

This chapter provides an overview of Mexico’s tax regime, covering areas of particular interest to investors such as individual and corporate tax liabilities, tax treaties, free trade agreements, and other investor considerations. This chapter contains an interview with Ricardo González Orta, Partner, Deloitte México.

This chapter provides an overview of Mexico’s legal framework, covering a range of topics from fiscal reforms to national water laws to ensure sustainable development. In addition, it features a viewpoint by César Maillard Canudas, Managing Partner, Maillard, Cerbón, Canudas, Argumedo, Palma y Asociados.

Though smaller than some other capital markets in the region, the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) reached record highs in 2017 against a backdrop of robust macroeconomic expansion and the sweeping Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion pro¬gramme, which should support the government’s size¬able infrastructure agenda, Build, Build, Build (BBB). Benefitting from rising levels of trading and liquid¬ity, and rapid growth in fixed income, the PSE is poised for a strong 2018. Efforts to finance the BBB agenda should see a near-term increase in the amount of foreign currency-denominated bonds, with a recent landmark Panda bond issuance – denominated in Chinese renminbi – attracting significant investor par¬ticipation. This chapter contains an interview with Ramon S Monzon, President and CEO, Philippine Stock Exchange.

The prevailing narrative of the Philippines’ energy sector in recent years has centred around energy security con¬cerns and the challenge of meeting growing demand. Efforts to realign the energy sector were ramped up during 2017 with the launch of reforms targeting investment and the promotion of efficiency. Modifications to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 have come at a critical juncture for the Philippines, as robust economic growth has outpaced the sector’s capacity to meet surging demand. Due to the imminent exhaustion of the country’s gas fields, dependence on imports of hydrocarbons has grown, worsening the current account deficit. In addition to falling reserves, the cost of electricity is also a major concern. This chapter contains an interview with Alfonso Cusi, Secretary of Energy.