Cofepris ordered Colgate-Palmolive to recall its Colgate Total Active Prevention Clean Mint Toothpaste from Mexico’s shelves immediately, and asked that consumers stop using the toothpaste and contact the company to return the product. 

The commission’s warning responds to reports from an unspecified number of consumers of adverse reactions. Cofepris said symptoms included:

• Oral irritation
• Gum inflammation
• Oral pain
• Tooth sensitivity
• Ulcers, canker sores, or boils
• Allergic reaction

Cofepris recommended consulting a health care professional if any of those symptoms are experienced. It also noted that symptoms varied from person to person and did not specify which ingredient was causing the symptoms from the toothpaste, which is manufactured in Mexico.

“It is reported that the recall is limited exclusively to the Colgate Total Active Prevention Clean Mint Toothpaste,” Cofepris clarified in a statement.

In July, Argentina’s National Administration of Drugs, Food and Medical Technology banned the use, distribution and sale of Colgate Total Clean Mint in all presentations and sizes following reports of adverse reactions. 

In addition, 11,441 adverse cases were reported in Brazil since the product’s launch in July 2024 to June 18, 2025, suggesting there could be a problem with the formula. 

“The product marketed in Brazil shares the same qualitative and quantitative formula, origin, and manufacturing plant with the one marketed in Argentina,” the Argentine agency said about the toothpaste. 

Cofepris said it will maintain surveillance to prevent producers, services or establishments from violating its decree. It also said it will inform the public if it identifies new evidence.  

The commission provided its contact information for concerned consumers: farmacovigilancia@cofepris.gob.mx

With reports from El Financiero

The post Mexican health authorities recall a popular Colgate toothpaste appeared first on Mexico News Daily

The number of workers registered with the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) stood at a record 23.59 million on July 31, according to a statement issued by the government agency.

IMSS said that the month-over-month increase of 1.266 million formal sector jobs was “boosted by the commencement of a pilot program for digital platform workers.”

The six-month pilot program — made possible thanks to labor law reforms — began on July 1.

One of the 100 commitments President Claudia Sheinbaum made on the day she was sworn in was to make social security benefits mandatory for “workers of apps” such as Uber, DiDi and Rappi.

‘A true paradigm shift’

At Sheinbaum’s morning press conference on Wednesday, Deputy Labor Minister Quiahuitl Chávez Domínguez said that digital platforms began registering workers with IMSS on July 1.

She said that registered workers will have access to formal sector employment benefits, including medical and accident insurance, government childcare centers and pension and housing programs.

“We are facing a true paradigm shift. Technological innovation is no longer at odds with labor rights,” Chávez said.

Digital platform workers need to earn at least 8,480 pesos (US $456) per month to have full access to formal sector employment benefits. The vast majority of the 1.26 million jobs added in July corresponded to digital platform positions, but it is not yet known how many of the “app workers” met the salary threshold to qualify for full benefits. But regardless of how much they earn, all digital platform workers now, at the very least, have accident insurance.

New labor reform protects rideshare and other platform gig workers

Chávez said that the reform requiring the incorporation of gig workers to IMSS was supported by both digital platform companies and their workers.

“Now there are clear rules, there is social security and there are fair working conditions for everyone,” she said.

Chávez highlighted that digital platform workers registered with IMSS won’t lose their right to labor flexibility. In other words, they will continue to be able to choose their own schedules and won’t be required to work a minimum number of hours. They will not be required to pay any additional taxes.

IMSS director Zoé Robledo told Sheinbaum’s press conference that 90% of more than 1 million digital platform workers in Mexico are men, while just 10% are women.

He said that 56% of such workers are 35 or younger and 23% have other formal sector jobs.

“This is very important because for a long time it was thought that [digital] platform work was a complement to other jobs. However, what we see is that for 74% of people, it’s probable that they only dedicate themselves to platform work,” Robledo said.

He said that the breakdown of digital platform workers in Mexico is “practically 50-50” — i.e., half are drivers for rideshare companies and half are delivery drivers or riders.

1.35 million formal sector jobs added this year 

IMSS reported that 1.353 million formal sector jobs were created between January and July. Mexico now has 6.1% more formal sector workers than at the end of 2024.

The addition of 1.26 million positions in July came after three consecutive months of formal sector job losses. Formal sector employment declined by almost 140,000 positions between April and June.

IMSS also reported that the number of people in formal sector jobs was 5.6% higher at the end of July than a year earlier.

Guillermina Rodriguez, senior vice president of economic studies at Banamex, told the newspaper El Economista that the annual growth in formal sector employment is mainly due to the registration of digital platform workers with IMSS.

She said that the incorporation of such works into the formal sector is “positive,” but their inclusion in the IMSS data “distorts the overall employment picture.”

In fact, data indicates that without the commencement of the pilot program for digital platform workers, the number of formal sector jobs in Mexico would have declined in July.

Most new formal sector jobs are not permanent positions 

Of the 1.35 million formal sector jobs added this year, just 155,591 positions — 11.5% of the total — are permanent positions. The bulk of the new jobs are temporary, or contract, positions.

The creation of permanent formal sector jobs declined 51.7% compared to the first seven months of 2024.

Excluding 2020, when many jobs were lost during the COVID pandemic, it was the worst start to a year for permanent formal sector job creation since 2009.

México state and CDMX record largest job growth; 19 states went backwards 

IMSS data shows that the number of formal sector jobs in México state — Mexico’s most populous state — increased 41.7% in the 12 months to July.

With 15.4% annual growth, Mexico City recorded the second-highest formal sector job creation rate.

The high formal sector job creation rates in the two entities are reflective of the high number of digital platform workers in the Mexico City metropolitan area, which includes many México state municipalities.

Ten other states recorded formal sector job growth in the 12 months to July. They were:

• Hidalgo (+3.1%)
• Michoacán (2.7%)
• Baja California Sur (2.3%)
• Aguascalientes (1.8%)
• Nuevo León (1.5%)
• Colima (1.4%)
• Quintana Roo (1.3%)
• Jalisco (0.8%)
• Guanajuato (0.3%)
• Querétaro (0.1%)

Puebla recorded a 0.0% annual formal sector job creation rate.

Of the 19 states that lost formal sector jobs in the 12 months to July, Tabasco saw the biggest drop, followed by Nayarit. The number of formal sector positions declined 9.6% in Tabasco and 3% in Nayarit.

Job creation by sector 

IMSS reported that the number of formal transport and communication sector workers increased 71% in the 12 months to July. The increase is largely due to the registration of digital platform workers with IMSS.

The number of formal sector workers increased in four other sectors reported by IMSS.

• Business services (+5.4%)
• Commerce (2.7%)
• Electricity (1.8%)
• Social and community services (1%)

The workforces of the following sectors declined in the 12 months to July.

• Construction (-7.9%)
• Mining (-5.5%)
• Manufacturing (-1.6%)
• Agriculture (-0.7%)

What is the average daily wage of a formal sector worker?

IMSS reported that the average daily base salary of a formal sector worker was 614.3 pesos (US $33) at the end of July. That is more than double the daily minimum wage in most of the country, which is set at 278.80 pesos.

IMSS said that the average formal sector wage was up 4.3% in annual terms at the end of last month.

With reports from El Economista and Reforma

The post Mexico adds record 1.26 million formal jobs in July as gig workers gain benefits appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and African and Central American countries departed Tapachula on foot early Wednesday, according to a report by the newspaper El Universal. Men, women and children are part of the group.

Located about 30 kilometers north of the Mexico-Guatemala border, Tapachula is the first destination in Mexico for many migrants and a common departure point for migrant caravans.

Unlike many previous migrant caravans, the group of foreigners who began their journey on Wednesday is not aiming to reach the Mexico-United States border, where security has increased and seeking asylum has become extremely difficult since U.S. President Donald Trump began his second term on Jan. 20.

Instead, their goal is to reach Mexico City “without being detained,” El Universal reported.

The migrants will presumably seek work and other opportunities in the capital. They had complained about the lack of employment opportunities in Tapachula and difficulties in regularizing their presence in Mexico.

Al menos 300 migrantes de diferentes nacionalidades buscan salir de Tapachula, Chiapas, en caravana; argumentan que los trámites de la Comisión Nacional de Ayuda a Refugiados son muy lentos.

Sigue la señal por https://t.co/JpgbIc5YLX pic.twitter.com/jkJpLSyDDW

— NMás (@nmas) August 6, 2025

“To migrate is not a crime,” read a banner carried by migrants as they departed Tapachula. They were accompanied by National Guard personnel, police and National Immigration Institute (INM) officials.

The migrants will reportedly spend their first night on the road in Álvaro Obregón, a small town about 12 kilometers north of Tapachula.

According to former INM chief Francisco Garduño, 129 migrant caravans formed in Mexico and traveled through the country during the 2018-24 presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador and in the first few months of the current administration. In recent years, large numbers of people from Central America, and further afield, have come to Mexico after fleeing their countries of origin for a range of reasons, including violence, poverty and climate change.

The goal of most migrants has been to reach the United States, but an increasing number of such people have chosen to stay in Mexico, or are finding it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to enter the U.S. now that Trump is back in the White House. For those who left Tapachula on Wednesday, “the American dream is over,” the newspaper Excélsior reported.

Is Luis García Villagrán a migrant rights advocate or a criminal?  

The migrant caravan that departed Tapachula on Wednesday is called “Éxodo de la Justicia” (Exodus of Justice), mainly because its members are reportedly calling for justice for Luis Rey García Villagrán, who was arrested in Tapachula on Tuesday.

García, a migrant rights activist who has led previous migrant caravans, was detained “for alleged crimes related to his work with migrants,” according to an Associated Press report that cited an unnamed federal official.

Citing “security sources,” the newspaper La Jornada reported that he is accused of organized crime and human trafficking.

President Claudia Sheinbaum said Wednesday that García — founder of an organization called the Center for Human Dignity — “is not an activist” and that a warrant for his arrest was issued years ago.

“He faces an accusation of human trafficking. The arrest warrant was issued years ago and is now being enforced,” she said.

El Universal reported that the migrants who departed Tapachula on Wednesday “expressed their sadness” over the arrest of García, described as the “main promoter” of the current caravan.

Heyman Vázquez Medina, a priest and activist who led the migrants in prayer before their departure, told Excélsior that the migrants who make up the caravan are demanding the release of García.

He said that García was detained unjustly, asserting that he hadn’t committed any crime and that his only “mistake” was to denounce those who extort and exploit migrants.

Vázquez claimed that the arrest of García was retaliation for his denunciation of the alleged corruption, abuses and collusion with organized crime of the INM, National Guard, police forces and the Mexican Commission for Refugee Assistance (COMAR).

“The government colludes with organized crime,” the priest told Excélsior.

AP reported that in 2024, “some migrants accused García Villagran of extortion and state prosecutors opened an investigation.”

“The Chiapas state prosecutor’s office has not said where that case stands,” the news agency said, adding that “Mexican authorities have arrested immigration activists in the past.”

In 1997, García was sentenced to more than 12 years in prison after he was convicted of kidnapping and criminal association. In 2021, he told Mexico News Daily that he was wrongfully accused.

“I was in prison for 12 years here in Mexico, accused of a crime that I didn’t commit. There were a lot of organizations that helped me: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Christian Action for the Abolition of Torture and in Mexico, the Center of Human Rights Fray Bartolomé de Las Casas, until they finally declared me a prisoner of conscience and I won my freedom. That motivated me to help other people. God motivates me to do this. I found God at university,” García told MND.

La Jornada reported that he has been accused of “having no interest” in the human rights of migrants as he “exposes them to exhausting and dangerous journeys and even confronts them with crime groups or with authorities.”

The newspaper also said that García has been accused of charging migrants up to US $2,000 to “speed up” bureaucratic procedures at the INM and COMAR.

With reports from El Universal, Excélsior, La Jornada, Infobae and AP  

The post Migrant caravan of 300 departs Tapachula, but not for the US appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Is La Paz getting a nude beach?

The ultimate trial balloon was recently let loose in La Paz regarding nudity. Nude beaches, of course, are a rarity in Mexico. Outside Zipolite in Oaxaca, there aren’t any, although Playa del Carmen in Quintana Roo used to have one, and the Riviera Maya does have some adults-only resorts where clothing is optional. Tourists have also been known to occasionally take some liberties on the nation’s beaches, but as far as legal recognition goes, Playa Zipolite remains the only officially sanctioned nude beach in Mexico.

However, there might be a possibility for one in La Paz. Well, the municipality of La Paz, anyway. It would have to be an area with little traffic so as not to offend the sensibilities of locals, and indeed, the area proposed by the La Paz comptroller, Jorge Pável Castro Ríos, in an interview with Diario El Independiente, is about as low traffic as it gets: between Playas El Saltito and El Carrizalito.

He noted that no formal requests have been made to date, and that permits would have to be acquired from the appropriate authorities. But the fact that it was brought up at all does seem to suggest that La Paz might be amenable to the tourism dollars and media interest generated by such a proposal.

Vendor access is being limited on Los Cabos beaches 

Life is good on Los Cabos’ beautiful beaches. But if there is a complaint, particularly on the more popular playas, it’s that there are way too many vendors. Local business owners, who have heard the complaints from tourists for years, have been vocal in pushing the local government to crack down on the many unauthorized vendors found on beaches like Playa El Médano in Cabo San Lucas, some of whom come from other states during the high tourist season.

It appears their voices, on behalf of innumerable harried tourists, have finally been heard. Over 300 vendors have been swept from local beaches by authorities, and moving forward, only those who are properly permitted and wear the official uniform—a long-sleeved white shirt—will be allowed to sell their wares. New uniforms are expected to be issued to the 698 paid-up vendors this summer. ID cards will also be issued to those who ponied up the 1,200 pesos to renew their permit, and an additional 600 pesos for the shirt. 

That still seems like an awful lot of vendors pestering tourists, but at least it’s easy to see them coming.

Los Cabos has the only two A+ Blue Flag beaches in Mexico 

When the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) announced its Blue Flag beaches for 2024 – 2025, Los Cabos had 25 of Mexico’s 78 awarded beaches, the most of any single municipality. However, even among beaches heralded for their cleanliness, sustainability, and services, there are levels.

For example, there is an A+ designation that signifies the very highest achievement obtainable under the Blue Flag banner, meaning not only does a beach meet all 33 international criteria for water quality standards, safety, services, and environmental management and education, but it maintains cleanliness at a truly exceptional level (no mean feat given the amount of garbage regularly hauled from local beaches).

These standards are so stringent that to date, only two beaches in Mexico have ever qualified: Playas Palmilla and Santa María in Los Cabos. The two A+ awardees were recently announced after a two-week audit, bringing attention to just how pristinely maintained these coastal stretches are, in addition to their aesthetic beauty. 

Naturally, that means the other local beaches aren’t operating at A+ levels. Blue Flag awardee Playa El Chileno, notably, appears to be struggling to maintain even the basic standard. For example, there have been reports of activities prohibited under Blue Flag rules, including unlicensed food and alcohol sales, and the unauthorized renting of beach chairs to tourists. Vendors without permits, of the kind mentioned earlier, have also allegedly been harassing beachgoers there.

Play El Chileno, it should be pointed out, is a very popular beach, particularly among locals. It’s also very beautiful, with excellent swimming and snorkeling. However, despite being a perennial Blue Flag winner and one of the first five beaches ever to achieve the honor in Mexico (dating back to 2014), it could be in danger of losing that status. 

It wouldn’t be the first. The thing about Blue Flag beaches is that the quality has to be consistently maintained, which is sometimes hard to do. But Los Cabos’ government has shown a commitment to keeping its beaches in excellent condition, resulting not only in its record number of Blue Flag playas, but also 17 newly minted Platinum ones. This honor, like the Blue Flag, is premised on cleanliness, services, and sustainability. But it’s administered not by FEE, but rather by the domestic Instituto Mexicano de Normalización y Certificación.

New signs delivered to popular Los Cabos beaches

New signage is also being delivered to some Los Cabos beaches this summer, as part of a Zofemat (Zona Federal Marítimo Terrestre) initiative to promote self-care and safety. The signs will showcase plenty of useful information, including an explanation of the flag system used to update the water conditions for swimming or other aquatic activities. 

No, this has nothing to do with the aforementioned blue or platinum flags. Rather, it refers to color-coded flags like the green, yellow, and red ones that are occasionally flown, and which, like the colors of a stop light, tell you whether you can swim because conditions are safe, you should take caution, or avoid getting in the water altogether. White flags, meanwhile, mean there are jellyfish in the water, while black flags indicate beach closure.

The signs weren’t installed at all beaches, but only at those that see the most traffic. 

Chris Sands is the Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best, writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook and a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily. His specialty is travel-related content and lifestyle features focused on food, wine and golf.

The post MND Local: Los Cabos news roundup appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) director Zoé Robledo presented the preliminary results during President Claudia Sheinbaum’s daily press conference on Monday. 

“Of the 4 million public school children who have undergone [the screenings], 18 percent are obese,” President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Monday. “And if we consider both overweight and obesity, the number rises to nearly 37 percent.”

Robledo said that 1,986,117 of the children screened between March and July as part of the government’s Healthy Living (Vida Saludable) program have received referrals for free medical attention.

The study found that more than half of the school-age children in three states — Campeche (56%), Quintana Roo (52%) and Tabasco (51%) — were either overweight or obese.

The study also found that the problem increased with age. While 33% of first-graders were assessed as overweight, the prevalence for sixth-graders was found to be 45%.

Additional results showed that 55% of the children screened had cavities and 35% had impaired vision.

The objective of the government’s program, Sheinbaum said, is to assess students’ health, offer referrals to clinics for checkups as needed and to promote a healthy lifestyle, featuring a nutritious diet and exercise.

“The program is very important because, in the end, it’s not just about providing healthcare when someone gets sick, but about prevention, about being able to build a healthy life,” she said.

The program is being managed by IMSS and the Education Ministry.

A Gringa’s take on the Mexican childhood obesity crisis

Four million schoolchildren underwent health screenings in the final months of the school year that ended in July. The screenings will continue during the upcoming school year until 12 million children have been evaluated.

“Our goal is to help families and teachers demonstrate how to eat right, how to exercise properly in order to lead a healthy life,” the president said, adding that the nationwide ban on junk food at public and private schools is a key part of this strategy.

The junk food ban, approved last year, went into effect on March 31.

Schools were required to phase out food and beverages displaying one or more black warning logos identifying the product as high in salt, sugar, calories or fat. These banned items include donuts, carbonated drinks, French fries, chips and snacks, candy, ice cream and flavored milk.

School administrators who violate the ban risk fines of up to 5,450 pesos (US $290).

With reports from La Jornada Maya, Excelsior and El Universal

The post More than one-third of Mexico’s schoolchildren are overweight or obese appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Ernesto Cuitláhuac Vázquez Reyna came under attack on Monday evening while traveling alone in a black Cadillac SUV on the Miguel Hidalgo Boulevard in Reynosa.

Attackers reportedly threw a grenade at his vehicle, causing it to catch fire.

Video footage indicates that Vázquez, apparently injured, subsequently got out of his vehicle and sat, or slumped, down next to its rear left wheel.

As smoke emanated from the vehicle, a gray SUV pulled up behind it and gunshots subsequently rang out. Video footage also shows a man dragging Vázquez’s body away from his vehicle, which was engulfed in flames at the time.

The newspaper La Jornada reported that the attack occurred near the FGR delegate’s office in Reynosa, located opposite the city of Hidalgo, Texas.

La Jornada also reported that gunmen “simultaneously blocked streets and avenues” in Reynosa and stole vehicles from “civilians unconnected to the events.”

The attackers were not immediately identified and no arrests in connection with the murder were reported. The Gulf Cartel and the Northeast Cartel are among the criminal groups that operate in Tamaulipas.

The Tamaulipas Attorney General’s Office said on social media that it “established coordination” with the FGR “to collaborate on the investigations into the events in which a person presumed to be a federal public servant lost his life.”

Tamaulipas Governor Américo Villareal condemned the crime against the FGR delegate, which occurred during rush hour in Reynosa.

“We stand in solidarity with his family and reiterate our complete willingness to cooperate with the Attorney General’s Office and the government of Mexico in the quest for justice and the construction of peace,” he wrote on X.

On Tuesday morning, President Claudia Sheinbaum said that the federal government’s security cabinet had been in contact with the Tamaulipas Attorney General’s Office and the FGR, and was supporting the efforts to “achieve justice in this case.”

Sheinbaum confirma que el Gabinete de Seguridad dará más información sobre el caso del delegado de la FGR, Ernesto Vázquez, que fue asesinado en Tamaulipas. pic.twitter.com/AwQhjCoU28

— La Silla Rota (@lasillarota) August 5, 2025

Tamaulipas is known for violent, cartel-related crime, but the security situation in the state has improved in recent years.

In the first half of 2025, there were 110 homicides in the state, according to federal data.

In terms of total murders, Tamaulipas ranked as the 10th least violent state out of Mexico’s 32 federal entities between January and June.

The victim

Vázquez had been the FGR delegate in Tamaulipas since 2019, according to media reports.

His work focused on investigating and prosecuting federal crimes in Tamaulipas and coordinating the FGR’s activities in the state, the news outlet N+ reported.

In Tamaulipas, Vázquez Reyna “coordinated and supervised” investigations into organized crime activity, electoral crimes, drug trafficking and other federal offenses, N+ said.

He also represented the FGR in legal cases related to federal crimes committed in the northern border state.

The news outlet Infobae reported that Vázquez wasn’t widely known outside security and justice circles. “However, his name appeared repeatedly in public activities related to the institutional relationship between the three levels of government,” Infobae said.

The newspaper Milenio reported that Vázquez attended a ceremony with the Tamaulipas governor on July 22 after the FGR donated a helicopter to state authorities to assist their security work.

Milenio also reported that the FGR carried out an operation in Reynosa on July 26 that resulted in the seizure of more than 1.8 million liters of fuel.

With reports from La Jornada, Reforma, Milenio, N+, and Infobae

The post Federal prosecutor fatally attacked in Reynosa appeared first on Mexico News Daily

A collective made up of parents of the victims said on Saturday that it had become aware that Sandra Luz Téllez Nieves, an owner and partner of the ABC Daycare Center in Hermosillo, was being held at the Eloy Detention Center in Arizona.

#ÚLTIMAHORA Confirma la Presidenta @Claudiashein solicitud de extradición de Sandra Luz Téllez, copropietaria de la #GuarderíaABC, detenida en #Arizona según informó la organización @12_manosunidas. Será la @SRE_mx encargada de brindar información pic.twitter.com/3BeyE5YK8I

— Michelle Rivera (@michelleriveraa) August 4, 2025

A court in Mexico issued a “rearrest warrant” for Téllez in 2022, and she was arrested in the United States after the issuance of an Interpol Red Notice, according to Grupo Manos Unidos por Nuestros Niños, as the aforesaid collective is called. The newspaper Milenio consulted U.S. Department of Homeland Security records that showed that Téllez was in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Arizona on Monday morning.

In an open letter to Sheinbaum and Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero, the group Manos Unidas por Nuestros Niños (Holding Hands for Our Children) said that the rearrest warrant was issued so that Téllez would be forced to comply with a jail sentence she received in Mexico, but never served.

“Madam President, we appeal to your empathy and solidarity so that this crime of the state doesn’t go unpunished. Mr. Attorney General of the Republic, we ask that the Mexican state do what is necessary so that Sandra Luz Téllez Nieves is deported and extradited to our country and turned over to Mexican authorities so that they send her to the corresponding prison and she serves the definitive and firm sentence issued against her for the death of and injuries to our sons and daughters,” the collective said.

At her morning press conference on Monday, Sheinbaum was asked about the extradition request.

“Yes, we obviously have to request the extradition,” the president said.

“What I’m not sure about is whether it has already been requested or is about to be requested,” Sheinbaum said.

She said that her government would always remain on the side of the victims of the ABC Daycare Center tragedy.

In 2016, Téllez was sentenced to almost 29 years in prison in connection with the deadly 2009 fire that started in a state government warehouse and spread to the daycare center. Her sentence was subsequently reduced on appeal to five years and seven months, but she didn’t serve that sentence, fleeing the country to avoid arrest in Mexico.

A rearrest warrant has been valid since February 2022, but Téllez remained a fugitive until her arrest in Arizona.

Milenio reported that among the other partners of the ABC Daycare Center in Hermosillo were “Alfonso Cristóbal Escalante Hoeffer (presumed husband of Téllez and ex-deputy minister of ranching in Sonora), Antonio Salido Suárez (ex-director of infrastructure and urban development at a state level), Marcia Matilde Altagracia Gómez del Campo Tonela (Salido’s wife) and Gildardo Urquídez Serrano.”

The fire 

The fire started in a Ministry of Finance warehouse in Hermosillo due to the overheating of an air conditioning unit, investigators found. The blaze quickly spread to the ABC Daycare Center, which was privately owned but had a contract with the Mexican Social Security Institute, a federal agency.

“The day care center was a firetrap, critics say,” The New York Times reported about two weeks after the fire on June 5, 2009.

Of the 49 children and babies killed, all were aged under five. Twenty-five were girls and 24 were boys. More than 100 other children suffered burns or other injuries.

On the 12th anniversary of the tragedy, the federal government noted in a statement that in addition to the deaths, 104 children were “injured or exposed to the inhalation of toxic gases.”

“Subsequent investigations determined that the daycare center did not comply with the established safety requirements, such as the presence of smoke detectors, the marking of evacuation routes and the minimum number of fire extinguishers and emergency exits. They also indicated that if the daycare center had met the regulations and safety requirements, the damages caused by the fire would have been much less severe or would not have occurred at all,” the government said.

A number of people were convicted of wrongdoing in connection with the deaths of the 49 children, but none are currently in prison, according to the news agency EFE.

Some of those convicted were subsequently exonerated, while the prison sentences of others were significantly reduced.

‘A thick cloak of impunity’

In its letter to Sheinbaum and Gertz, Manos Unidas por Nuestros Niños said that since the tragedy more than 16 years ago, the parents of the victims haven’t stopped demanding justice.

“From the start, the case was covered by a thick cloak of impunity, beginning with the authorities involved from the three levels of government and the owner-partners of the daycare center,” the collective said.

The collective said it was aware that a law firm in Arizona was seeking political asylum for Téllez, “falsely alleging” that she is “a politically persecuted person, when in fact she is guilty of the homicide of 49 boys and girls.”

The newspaper La Jornada reported that the ABC Daycare center case has long been “shrouded in allegations of cover-ups and impunity.”

“The owners of the daycare center maintained close ties with officials from the three levels of government during the [federal] administration of [former president] Felipe Calderón Hinojosa,” La Jornada said.

“For years, the families [of the victims] have denounced legal obstacles, political protection and a judicial system that is indifferent to their demands for justice,” the newspaper said.

With reports from Aristegui Noticias, La Jornada and López-Dóriga Digital

The post Mexico asks US to extradite former daycare owner convicted of manslaughter appeared first on Mexico News Daily

The sailboat was en route to Australia from Mexico, according to investigative reporters with Aristegui Noticias. It was boarded by French authorities after it made a stopover in Nuku Hiva, the largest of the Marquesas Islands, one of five archipelagos that make up French Polynesia.

An initial inspection found 900 kilograms of cocaine and 180 kg of methamphetamine, but a more exhaustive search by the authorities led to the discovery of 1.8 tonnes of cocaine, 232 kg of meth, 11 firearms and 24 magazines.

Officials are calling the bust the largest narcotics haul ever recorded in the territory.

The two men on board — a Dutchman and a German — were arrested.

France’s Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau praised the work of the French Customs Service, the local gendarmes and officials with the French Office for Biodiversity.

“The State will never give in to the drug trafficking that plagues our regions,” Retailleau said in a social media post. “Throughout the country, drug traffickers will be relentlessly pursued.”

#ContreLeNarcoTrafic Saisie record en #Polynésie française !
1,6 T de cocaïne, 232 kg de méthamphétamine, 11 armes de point et 24 chargeurs
Une excellente coopération #douanes, antenne #Ofast de Papeete et commandement de la gendarmerie de Polynésie pic.twitter.com/dvhG5XKsHD

— Gendarmerie nationale (@Gendarmerie) August 4, 2025

According to the news magazine Proceso, French Polynesia is a popular route for methamphetamine and cocaine trafficking, which “primarily originates from clandestine laboratories located in Mexico.” 

Traffickers take advantage of the vast expanse of ocean to ship their drugs from South American and Mexican sources to the Australian market. This makes effective patrolling by authorities extremely challenging, according to the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre.

French Polynesia’s vast maritime zone comprises 5.5 million square kilometers.

In late June, the Assembly of French Polynesia urged the French government to declare the fight against meth a national priority. The past year has seen a 28-percent rise in drug-related court cases with the increasing involvement of minors, according to Radio France Internationale.

A social media post from France’s Ministry of Overseas Territories said protection of the population in its territories is a priority in the face of the growing pressure of drug trafficking.

“In French Polynesia, our security forces are mobilized to combat these criminal networks that threaten youth and social cohesion,” it said.

With reports from Proceso and Aristegui Noticias

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Analysts partially attributed the sharp decline to fear of going out to work among Mexicans in the United States, where the U.S. government is pursuing an aggressive deportation agenda.

The vast majority of remittances to Mexico are sent from the United States, where millions of Mexicans — both documented and undocumented — live and work.

The Bank of Mexico (Banxico) reported on Friday that income from remittances totaled US $5.201 billion in June, down from $6.207 billion in the same month of 2024.

The 16.2% year-over-year decline was the biggest annual drop in remittances to Mexico for any month since September 2012. Considering only the month of June, it was the largest annual decrease on record.

“Remittances plummeted in June due to low job creation for Mexicans in the United States and the fear of migrants to go out due to the possibility of being deported,” Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at Banco Base, wrote on X on Friday morning.

Jesús Cervantes González, director of economic statistics at the Center for Latin American Monetary Studies, said “there are indicators that show a weakening of employment for Mexican immigrant workers in the United States.”

“That could be due both to a genuine decrease in demand for such workers and to their irregular presence at their workplaces out of fear of being deported,” he said.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has carried out immigration raids in various U.S. cities this year, including in Los Angeles in June.

United States President Donald Trump has pledged to carry out “the largest deportation operation in American history.”

Remittances declined more than 5% in first half of 2025 

In 2024, Mexico received a record-high $64.74 billion in remittances, the 11th consecutive year of growth in such transfers.

But in the first six months of 2025, income from remittances fell 5.6% annually to $29.576 billion, according to Banxico.

The amount of money Mexico received in remittances also declined in annual terms in May, April and February.

Siller, the Banco Base analyst, said that the data for June indicated that “remittances could continue to decline for the rest of the year, affecting consumption in Mexico.”

Analysts from the banks Banorte, BBVA, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan also believe there is a risk that remittances will continue to decline in the second half of 2025, according to the newspaper El Economista.

Such an eventuality would affect millions of Mexican families that depend on remittances to meet their basic needs. It would also affect the Mexican economy, reducing consumption and thus contributing to what is widely forecast to be a lower level of growth in 2025.

In recent years, remittances have represented 3%-4% of Mexico’s GDP.

The United States will impose a 1% tax on remittances sent in cash on Jan. 1, 2026, prompting the Mexican government to promote a government bank card that can help Mexicans living in the United States avoid the tax.

Remittances data in detail 

• The $5.2 billion sent to Mexico in remittances in June came in 12.7 million individual transfers. The number of transfers declined 14.3% compared to June 2024.
• The average individual remittance to Mexico in June was $409, a 2.2% annual decline. While the average remittance declined in annual terms in June, the amount was the highest since August 2024.
• Mexico received 76.19 million individual remittances in the first six months of 2025, a 4.4% decline compared to the first half of 2024.
• The average individual remittance in the first half of 2025 was $388, a 1.3% annual decrease.
• Between January and June, 99.1% of all remittances to Mexico were sent electronically. The remaining 0.9% of remittances were “cash and kind” (0.7%) and money orders (0.2%).

The decline in the number of individual remittances to Mexico indicates that fewer Mexicans sent money home in the first half of the year.

BBVA said that “the recent actions and immigration policies of the United States government are marginally affecting” the transfer of remittances to Mexico.

The bank said that the decline in remittances to Mexico in the first half of the year is “mainly explained by a lower incorporation of new Mexican migrants to the United States labor market.”

The peso value of an average remittance declined on a sequential basis every month in first half of 2025

The Mexican peso appreciated against the US dollar every month in the first half of the year. Therefore, the peso value of the average $388 remittance declined every month on a sequential basis.

What to expect for the Mexican peso in 2025, according to analysts

On Jan. 31, Banxico’s closing USD:MXN exchange rate was 20.69, whereas on April 30 it was 19.61 and on June 30 it was 18.76.

Using those rates, a $388 remittance was worth 8,027 pesos on Jan. 31; 7,608 pesos on April 30; and 7,279 pesos on June 30. Therefore, a $388 remittance was worth 9.3% less in pesos at the end of June compared to the end of January.

With reports from El Economista, La Jornada and Reforma 

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The report, which covered the years 2016-2024, revealed that these changes in income were driven primarily by increases in the minimum wage, the expansion of formal employment and the strengthening of social programs. The survey covers Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s presidency as well as the last two years of former President Enrique Peña Nieto’s term.

En México, los hogares reciben en promedio un ingreso trimestral de $77,863.
Menores ingresos $16,795.
Mayores ingresos $236,095.
¿Qué otros datos nos da la #ENIGH2024 del @INEGI_INFORMA? pic.twitter.com/5gFY6S5Jgp

— IMCO (@imcomx) August 1, 2025

Published in July by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI), the survey reveals that between 2022 and 2024, the average quarterly household income reached 77,864 pesos, up 10.6% compared to the survey’s 2020-2022 edition.

Notably, the poorest 10% of households saw a substantial income increase since 2016 — over 35% — while earners in the top 10% saw their income drop by 8%.

Income inequality has slowly and steadily diminished since 2016, the survey showed. However, a significant income gap still remains between the highest and lowest brackets: In 2024, while the lowest-income households reported an average quarterly income of 16,795 pesos, those in the highest decile earned 236,095 pesos per quarter — roughly 14 times more.

Gender and regional inequality also persist. Between 2022-2024 women on average earned 34% less than men, meaning that for every 100 pesos a man earned, a woman earned 66 pesos. Disparity is also seen regionally, with households in the northern state of Nuevo León earning almost three times as much on average as those in Chiapas, a southern state that historically has lagged in various economic indicators. After Nuevo León, Mexico City concentrates the highest household income.

The main source of household income continues to be labor income (66%), followed by transfers (18%), which is household income that does not come directly from work activities or rental properties. It can include remittances, private or public scholarships, gifts from other households and social programs, among others.

According to INEGI, transfers recorded the greatest growth as a source of income between 2016 and 2024, with an increase of 26.5%.

As income grows, households are shrinking and getting older 

The survey reported an 8.5% reduction in household size between 2016 and 2024. During this period, the number of household members under the age of 15 decreased by 24.8%, while the number of members aged 15 to 64 decreased by an average of 5.2%.

In contrast, the number of household members aged 65 and over increased by 21.3%. During this same period, the country saw a 10.2% drop in the number of income earners per household. Furthermore, among employed household members, there was a 3.4% decrease during the same period.

Mexico News Daily

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