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Small Business (BC),
Vancouver, Canada |
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Background: |
The site of advanced Amerindian
civilizations, Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before
achieving independence early in the 19th century. A devaluation of the peso
in late 1994 threw Mexico into economic turmoil, triggering the worst recession
in over half a century. The nation continues to make an impressive recovery.
Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment
for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution,
and few advancement opportunities for the largely Amerindian population
in the impoverished southern states. The elections held in 2000 marked the
first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that an opposition candidate
- Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) - defeated the party in
government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded
in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON
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| Government |
|
|
Country name: |
conventional long form: United Mexican States
conventional short form: Mexico
local long form: Estados Unidos
Mexicanos
local short form: Mexico
|
|
Government type: |
federal republic |
|
Capital: |
name: Mexico
(Distrito Federal)
geographic coordinates: 19 26 N, 99 08 W
time difference: UTC-6 (1 hour behind Washington,
DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Sunday in April, ends
last Sunday in October
note: Mexico
is divided into three time zones |
|
Administrative divisions: |
31 states (estados, singular - estado)
and 1 federal district* (distrito federal),
Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua,
Coahuila de Zaragoza,
Colima, Distrito
Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero,
Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan de
Ocampo, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla,
Queretaro de Arteaga,
Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa,
Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala,
Veracruz-Llave, Yucatan, Zacatecas
|
|
Independence: |
16 September 1810
(declared), 27
September 1821 (recognized by Spain) |
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National holiday: |
Independence Day, 16 September (1810) |
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Constitution: |
5 February 1917
|
|
Legal system: |
mixture of US
constitutional theory and civil law system, judicial review of legislative
acts, accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
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Suffrage: |
18 years of age, universal and compulsory (but not enforced) |
|
Executive branch: |
chief of state: President Felipe de Jesus CALDERON Hinojosa
(since 1 December 2006), note - the president is both the chief of
state and head of government
head of government: President Felipe de Jesus CALDERON Hinojosa
(since 1 December 2006)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president, note - appointment
of attorney general requires consent of the Senate
elections: president elected by popular vote for a single six-year
term, election last held on 2 July 2006 (next to be held 1 July 2012)
election results: Felipe CALDERON elected president, percent
of vote - Felipe CALDERON 35.89%, Andres Manuel LOPEZ OBRADOR 35.31%,
Roberto MADRAZO 22.26%, other 6.54% |
|
Legislative branch: |
bicameral National Congress or Congreso
de la Union consists of the Senate or Camara
de Senadores (128 seats, 96 members are elected by popular
vote to serve six-year terms, and 32 seats are allocated on the basis
of each party`s popular vote) and the Federal Chamber of Deputies
or Camara Federal de Diputados (500
seats, 300 members are elected by popular vote, remaining 200 members
are allocated on the basis of each party`s popular vote, to serve
three-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 2 July 2006 for all of the seats
(next to be held 1 July 2012), Chamber of Deputies - last held 2 July
2006 (next to be held 5 July 2009)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA, seats
by party - PAN 52, PRI 33, PRD 26, PVEM 6, CD 5, PT 5, independent
1, Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA, seats by party
- PAN 207, PRD 127, PRI 106, PVEM 17, CD 17, PT 11, other 15 |
|
Judicial branch: |
Supreme Court of Justice or Suprema Corte
de Justicia de la Nacion (justices
or ministros are appointed by the president
with consent of the Senate) |
|
Political parties and
leaders: |
Convergence for Democracy or CD [Luis MALDONADO Venegas],
Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI [Beatriz PAREDES], Labor
Party or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez], Mexican Green Ecological Party
or PVEM [Jorge Emilio GONZALEZ Martinez], National Action Party (Partido
Accion Nacional)
or PAN [German MARTINEZ Cazares], New Alliance
Party (Partido Nueva Alianza) or PNA [Jorge Antonio KAHWAGI Macari], Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolucion Democratica) or PRD [Leonel COTA
Montano], Social Democratic and Peasant Alternative Party (Partido Alternativa Socialdemocrata y Campesina) or
Alternativa [Alberto BEGNE Guerra] |
|
Political pressure groups
and leaders: |
Broad Progressive Front or FAP, Businessmen`s Coordinating Council
or CCE, Confederation of Employers of the Mexican Republic or COPARMEX,
Confederation of Industrial Chambers or CONCAMIN, Confederation of
Mexican Workers or CTM, Confederation of National Chambers of Commerce
or CONCANACO, Coordinator for Foreign Trade Business Organizations
or COECE, Federation of Unions Providing Goods and Services or FESEBES,
National Chamber of Transformation Industries or CANACINTRA, National
Peasant Confederation or CNC, National Small Business Chamber or CANACOPE,
National Syndicate of Education Workers or SNTE, National Union of
Workers or UNT, Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca or APPO,
Roman Catholic Church |
|
International organization
participation: |
APEC, BCIE, BIS, CAN (observer), Caricom
(observer), CDB, CE (observer), CSN (observer), EBRD, FAO, G-3, G-15,
G-24, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC,
IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA, NAFTA, NAM (observer),
NEA, OAS, OECD, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, Union Latina, UNITAR, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WTO |
|
Diplomatic representation
in the US: |
chief of mission: Ambassador Arturo SARUKHAN Casamitjana
chancery: 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006
telephone: [1] (202) 728-1600
FAX: [1] (202) 728-1698
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Dallas,
Denver, El Paso, Houston, Laredo (Texas), Los Angeles, Miami, New
Orleans, New York, Nogales (Arizona), Omaha, Orlando, Phoenix, Sacramento,
San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto
Rico)
consulate(s): Albuquerque, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California),
Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno
(California), Indianapolis (Indiana), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo
(Texas), Las Vegas, Little Rock (Arkansas), McAllen (Texas), New Orleans,
Omaha, Orlando, Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Portland (Oregon),
Presidio (Texas), Raleigh, Saint Paul (Minnesota), Salt Lake City,
San Bernardino, Santa Ana (California), Seattle, Tucson, Yuma (Arizona)
|
|
Diplomatic representation
from the US: |
chief of mission: Ambassador Antonio O. GARZA, Jr.
embassy: Paseo de la Reforma
305, Colonia Cuauhtemoc,
06500 Mexico, Distrito Federal
mailing address: P. O. Box 9000, Brownsville, TX 78520-9000
telephone: [52] (55) 5080-2000
FAX: [52] (55) 5511-9980
consulate(s) general: Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey,
Tijuana
consulate(s): Hermosillo, Matamoros, Merida, Nogales, Nuevo
Laredo |
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Flag description: |
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red,
the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake in its
beak) is centered in the white band |
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Economy - overview: |
Mexico
has a free market economy in the trillion dollar class. It contains
a mixture of modern and outmoded industry and agriculture, increasingly
dominated by the private sector. Recent administrations have expanded
competition in seaports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity
generation, natural gas distribution, and airports. Per capita income
is one-fourth that of the US,
income distribution remains highly unequal. Trade with the US and Canada has tripled since the implementation
of NAFTA in 1994. Mexico
has 12 free trade agreements with over 40 countries including, Guatemala, Honduras,
El Salvador, the
European Free Trade Area, and Japan,
putting more than 90% of trade under free trade agreements. In 2007,
during his first year in office, the Felipe CALDERON administration
was able to garner support from the opposition to successfully pass
a pension and a fiscal reform. The administration continues to face
many economic challenges including the need to upgrade infrastructure,
modernize labor laws, and allow private investment in the energy sector.
CALDERON has stated that his top economic priorities remain reducing
poverty and creating jobs. |
|
GDP (purchasing power
parity): |
$1.346 trillion (2007 est.) |
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GDP (official exchange
rate): |
$893.4 billion (2007 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate: |
3.3% (2007 est.) |
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GDP - per capita (PPP): |
$12,800 (2007 est.) |
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GDP - composition by
sector: |
agriculture: 4%
industry: 26.6%
services: 69.5% (2007 est.) |
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Labor force: |
44.71 million (2007 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation: |
agriculture: 18%
industry: 24%
services: 58% (2003) |
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Unemployment rate: |
3.7% plus underemployment of perhaps 25% (2007 est.) |
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Population below poverty
line: |
13.8% using food-based definition of poverty, asset based poverty
amounted to more than 40% (2006) |
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Household income or consumption
by percentage share: |
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 37% (2006) |
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Distribution of family
income - Gini index: |
50.9 (2005) |
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Inflation rate (consumer
prices): |
4% (2007) |
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Investment (gross fixed): |
20.8% of GDP (2007 est.) |
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Budget: |
revenues: $209.2 billion
expenditures: $209.2 billion (2007 est.) |
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Public debt: |
22.8% of GDP (2007 est.) |
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Agriculture - products: |
corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes,
beef, poultry, dairy products, wood products |
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Industries: |
food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum,
mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism
|
|
Industrial production
growth rate: |
1.4% (2007 est.) |
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Electricity - production: |
222.4 billion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity - consumption: |
183.3 billion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity - exports: |
1.597 billion kWh (2005) |
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Electricity - imports: |
470.7 million kWh (2005) |
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Oil - production: |
3.784 million bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil - consumption: |
2.078 million bbl/day (2005 est.) |
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Oil - exports: |
2.268 million bbl/day (2004) |
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Oil - imports: |
308,500 bbl/day (2004) |
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Oil - proved reserves: |
14.7 billion bbl (2007 est.) |
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Natural gas - production: |
41.37 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption: |
47.5 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - exports: |
282.9 million cu m (2005 est.) |
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Natural gas - imports: |
9.717 billion cu m (2005) |
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Natural gas - proved
reserves: |
434.1 billion cu m (1
January 2006 est.) |
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Current account balance: |
-$7.37 billion (2007 est.) |
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Exports: |
$271.9 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
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Exports - commodities: |
manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables,
coffee, cotton |
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Exports - partners: |
US 84.7%, Canada 2.1%, Spain 1.3% (2006) |
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Imports: |
$283 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
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Imports - commodities: |
metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery,
electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor
vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts |
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Imports - partners: |
US 50.9%, China 9.5%, Japan
6%, South Korea
4.2% (2006) |
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Economic aid - recipient: |
$189.4 million (2005) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange
and gold: |
$87.19 billion (31
December 2007 est.) |
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Debt - external: |
$179.7 billion (31
December 2007) |
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Stock of direct foreign
investment - at home: |
$259.5 billion (2007 est.) |
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Stock of direct foreign
investment - abroad: |
$36.23 billion (2007 est.) |
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Market value of publicly
traded shares: |
$348.3 billion (2006) |
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Currency (code): |
Mexican peso (MXN) |
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Exchange rates: |
Mexican pesos per US dollar - 10.8 (2007), 10.899 (2006), 10.898 (2005),
11.286 (2004), 10.789 (2003) |
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Fiscal year: |
calendar year |
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| Communications |
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Telephones - main lines
in use: |
19.861 million (2006) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular: |
57.016 million (2006) |
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Telephone system: |
general assessment: adequate telephone service for business
and government, but the population is poorly served, mobile subscribers
far outnumber fixed-line subscribers, domestic satellite system with
120 earth stations, extensive microwave radio relay network, considerable
use of fiber-optic cable and coaxial cable
domestic: low telephone density with about 18 fixed lines per
100 persons, privatized in December 1990, despite the opening to competition
in January 1997, Telmex remains dominant,
legal challenges to Telmex`s alleged anti-competitive
behavior in the mobile and fixed-line markets culminated in a World
Trade Organization ruling in 2004 against Mexico prompting some strengthening
of the powers granted Mexico`s telecom regulator
international: country code - 52, Columbus-2 fiber-optic submarine
cable with access to the US, Virgin Islands, Canary Islands, Spain,
and Italy, the Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and
the MAYA-1 submarine cable system together provide access to Central
America, parts of South America and the Caribbean, and the US, satellite
earth stations - 120 (32 Intelsat, 2 Solidaridad
(giving Mexico improved access to South America, Central America,
and much of the US as well as enhancing domestic communications),
1 Panamsat, numerous Inmarsat
mobile earth stations), linked to Central American Microwave System
of trunk connections (2005) |
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Radio broadcast stations: |
AM 850, FM 545, shortwave 15 (2003) |
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Television broadcast
stations: |
236 (plus repeaters) (1997) |
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Internet country code: |
.mx |
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Internet hosts: |
7.629 million (2007) |
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Internet users: |
22 million (2006) |
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| Transportation |
|
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Airports: |
1,834 (2007) |
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Airports - with paved
runways: |
total: 231
over 3,047 m: 12
2,438 to 3,047 m: 29
1,524 to 2,437 m: 84
914 to 1,523 m: 77
under 914 m: 29 (2007) |
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Airports - with unpaved
runways: |
total: 1,603
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 63
914 to 1,523 m: 408
under 914 m: 1,131 (2007) |
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Heliports: |
1 (2007) |
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Pipelines: |
gas 22,705 km, liquid petroleum gas 1,875 km, oil 8,688 km, oil/gas/water
228 km, refined products 6,520 km (2006) |
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Railways: |
total: 17,665 km
standard gauge: 17,665 km 1.435-m gauge (2006) |
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Roadways: |
total: 356,945 km
paved: 123,503 km (includes 6,144 km of expressways)
unpaved: 233,442 km (2005) |
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Waterways: |
2,900 km (navigable rivers and coastal canals) (2007) |
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Merchant marine: |
total: 60 ships (1000 GRT or over) 802,128 GRT/1,157,971 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 7, chemical tanker 6, liquefied
gas 4, passenger/cargo 11, petroleum tanker 25, roll on/roll off 5
foreign-owned: 4 (Denmark 2, Norway 1, UAE 1)
registered in other countries: 14 (Brazil 1, Honduras 1, Liberia
1, Panama 4, Portugal 1, Spain 3, Venezuela 3) (2007) |
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Ports and terminals: |
Altamira, Coatzacoalcos,
Manzanillo, Morro
Redondo, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Veracruz |
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| Transnational Issues |
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Disputes - international: |
abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border
region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements;
the US has intensified security measures to monitor and control legal
and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities across its border
with Mexico, Mexico must deal with thousands of impoverished Guatemalans
and other Central Americans who cross the porous border looking for
work in Mexico and the United States |
|
Refugees and internally
displaced persons: |
IDPs: 5,500-10,000 (government's
quashing of Zapatista uprising in 1994 in eastern Chiapas Region)
(2007) |
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Illicit drugs: |
major drug-producing nation, cultivation of opium poppy in 2005 amounted
to 3,300 hectares yielding a potential production of 8 metric tons
of pure heroin, or 17 metric tons of "black tar" heroin,
the dominant form of Mexican heroin in the western United States,
marijuana cultivation decreased 3% to 5,600 hectares in 2005 - just
two years after a decade-high cultivation peak in 2003 - and yielded
a potential production of 10,100 metric tons, government conducts
the largest independent illicit-crop eradication program in the world,
continues as the primary transshipment country for US-bound cocaine
from South America, with an estimated 90% of annual cocaine movements
towards the US stopping in Mexico, major drug syndicates control majority
of drug trafficking throughout the country, producer and distributor
of ecstasy, significant money-laundering center, major supplier of
heroin and largest foreign supplier of marijuana and methamphetamine
to the US market |
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