Here is a recap of the president’s Aug. 6 mañanera.

‘We’re against the death penalty’ 

A reporter noted that prosecutors in the United States won’t seek the death penalty in their cases against the “Mexican capos” Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Rafael Caro Quintero.

Zambada was arrested in the United States in July 2024 after he was allegedly kidnapped in Sinaloa and forced onto a U.S.-bound private plane, while Caro Quintero is one of 29 cartel figures who were extradited to the U.S. in February.

Both men have pleaded not guilty to accusations they face in the United States. The Associated Press reported on Tuesday that it was “unclear whether taking the death penalty off the table signals any possibility of a plea deal with either or both men.”

The aforesaid reporter asked Sheinbaum her opinion on the matter, saying that the decision not to seek the death penalty in cases against Zambada and Caro Quintero could mean that the two men are coming to some kind of agreement with authorities in the United States.

“We’re against the death penalty, no matter the crime,” the president responded. “It’s not something we agree with.”

Sheinbaum stressed that opposition to the death penalty is “part of Mexican policy” and not a “personal issue.”

She said that in “all” of Mexico’s extradition treaties, “reciprocity” with Mexican laws is established, meaning that Mexicans sent abroad can’t be subject to the death penalty even if the country they are extradited to allows capital punishment.

“So when … [Mexicans] are extradited, there is no death penalty,” Sheinbaum said.

In all cases when Mexicans face criminal charges abroad, “what Mexico seeks is reciprocity with our laws,” she said.

“It has nothing to do with the person or the criminal, but rather with the fact that we don’t agree with the death penalty,” Sheinbaum said.

Sentences in US against men convicted of trafficking weapons to Mexico a ‘good sign,’ says Sheinbaum 

A reporter noted that six people were recently sentenced in the United States for trafficking weapons to Mexico, and highlighted that U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson commented on the case.

The United States Attorney’s Office in the Middle District of Florida announced on Friday that six men had been sentenced for trafficking military-grade firearms to Mexican drug cartels. The sentences range from 1.5 to nine years in federal prison.

In a post to social media on Monday, Johnson said that “the case of six Florida men sentenced for trafficking military-grade firearms to Mexican cartels reaffirms [the United States’] commitment to stopping the flow of illegal weapons into [Mexico].”

El caso de los seis hombres en Florida que fueron sentenciados por traficar armas de grado militar a cárteles mexicanos reafirma el compromiso de para frenar el flujo de armas ilegales hacia . Seguiremos colaborando, bajo el liderazgo de @POTUS @realDonaldTrump, con la…

— Embajador Ronald Johnson (@USAmbMex) August 4, 2025

“Under the leadership of @POTUS @realDonaldTrump, we will continue working with President @ClaudiaShein and her team to dismantle these networks,” the ambassador wrote.

Sheinbaum was asked whether the sentences indicated that the United States government is “paying attention to the demands” of the Mexican government, which has long called on the U.S. to do more to stop the southward flow of firearms.

“Yes,” she responded.

“Of course, we’re going to continue insisting that … [they do] even more, but it’s a good sign that people have been arrested [in the U.S.] for arms trafficking,” Sheinbaum said.

She said that in conversations with U.S. officials, including Ambassador Johnson, Mexican officials have “always” advocated in favor of the U.S. taking action to prevent the trafficking of weapons to Mexico.

Many of the firearms that are smuggled into the country end up in the hands of members of organized crime groups. Those weapons are commonly used to commit serious crimes in Mexico, including murder.

New ‘border unit’ established in Sonora 

In another social media post on Monday, Ambassador Johnson said that “the new Border Unit in Sonora is a concrete step to stop the flow of illicit drugs, weapons, and people, while boosting trade and community ties.”

“A secure border benefits both countries — creating an environment where citizens can prosper. Border security is a shared priority — driven by the leadership of @POTUS @realDonaldTrump and President @ClaudiaShein,” he wrote.

Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo said on Friday that 18 state police officers who are part of the new unit had completed “specialized training” with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Como parte de la nueva División de Operaciones Fronterizas, hoy 18 elementos de la Policía Estatal concluyeron su capacitación especializada con la CBP de Estados Unidos.

Un esfuerzo binacional que refuerza nuestra presencia institucional en la frontera, con profesionalismo y… pic.twitter.com/VPxiCD2fsR

— Alfonso Durazo (@AlfonsoDurazo) August 1, 2025

Sheinbaum said that the establishment of the new border unit is “part of the agreements” between Mexican and U.S. authorities. The neighboring countries are expected to sign a new security pact soon.

Sheinbaum highlighted that Mexican states have their own agreements with U.S. authorities. She told reporters that Baja California has an agreement with the CBP and that Sonora “also has agreements” that involve the sharing of information with U.S. authorities.

“If there is a criminal who crosses the border from the other side, you obviously have to have information,” Sheinbaum said.

“…. Now that there is the presence of the United States army on the border, there has to be communication,” she said.

“There is communication between the National Immigration Institute and CBP, and there is communication between [Mexican] Customs and CBP as well. There is communication between the governors of [border states] and their counterparts,” said Sheinbaum, who noted that Mexico also collaborates with Guatemala on security issues at their shared border.

“Due to the entry of police from Chiapas to Guatemala, a meeting was held, agreements were formalized and now there is more collaboration,” she said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post New Sonora ‘border unit’ to focus on arms, drug trafficking: Wednesday’s mañanera recapped 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

Sheinbaum declined to respond to some questions about issues not related to Pemex, but did speak about a new Mexico-United States security agreement that is expected to be signed soon.

Mexico-US security agreement is ready, says Sheinbaum 

Sheinbaum said that a new security agreement between Mexico and the United States is “ready,” but won’t be signed this week.

She said that she would present the new agreement at a future press conference in order to be “very transparent.”

In late 2021, during the governments of Andrés Manuel López Obrador in Mexico and Joe Biden in the United States, the two countries entered into the Bicentennial Framework for Security, Public Health and Safe Communities, which superseded the Mérida Initiative.

Last Thursday, Sheinbaum said that she believed that the new bilateral security agreement would be signed this week.

However, she claimed on Tuesday that her remarks were misunderstood and that she didn’t say that at all.

“… The wording [of the agreement] is practically finished, [but] it still hasn’t been decided when it will be signed,” Sheinbaum said.

She said that the agreement is governed by four key principles.

• Respect for sovereignty.
• Respect for each other’s territory.
• Mutual trust.
• Collaboration and cooperation between Mexico and the United States “within that framework.”

The Trump administration has been pressuring Mexico — including through the threat of tariffs — to do more to combat drug cartels in Mexico and stop the trafficking of narcotics to the United States, especially fentanyl.

A violent start to the week 

A reporter asked the president whether recent acts of violence such as the murder of a prosecutor in Tamaulipas and the murder of a union leader in Quintana Roo as well as the discovery of dismembered bodies in Veracruz and the discovery of 32 bodies in a clandestine grave in Irapuato, Guanajuato, could be “used” by the United States in negotiations over the security agreement.

Federal prosecutor fatally attacked in Reynosa

“There is an agreement of collaboration and cooperation,” Sheinbaum said, apparently reiterating that the pact has already been drawn up.

“… We’re a sovereign country, we make decisions as a sovereign country,” she added.

“And with the United States, we collaborate and cooperate and that collaboration and cooperation is very important, but with [respect for each other’s] sovereignty,” Sheinbaum said.

Pushed as to whether acts of violence in Mexico could “raise the price of the negotiation” with the United States, “so to speak,” the president effectively brushed off the question, only responding, “Why?”

A US military intervention in Mexico is ‘not on the table,’ says Sheinbaum

After Sheinbaum’s aforesaid response, a different reporter abruptly asked the president about the possibility of a U.S. military intervention against criminal groups in Mexico.

Sheinbaum reminded the press corps that she had previously rejected an offer from U.S. President Donald Trump to send the United States army into Mexico.

“They can insist again, but that issue is not on the table,” she said.

“… There are other ways of collaborating and coordinating with each other. There is information they can provide us, information we can provide them in a scheme of collaboration without subordination and respecting our sovereignty,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Will the new bilateral security agreement permit US military intervention? Tuesday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Among the other goals of the Comprehensive Capitalization and Financing Strategy are to significantly reduce Pemex’s debt and increase the domestic production of natural gas, a fuel that the United States currently supplies to Mexico in large quantities.

Federal officials presented the plan at President Claudia Sheinbaum’s morning press conference on Tuesday, four days after Fitch Ratings upgraded Pemex’s long-term issuer default ratings and a week after the Finance Ministry announced the placing of US $12 billion in a debt offering to support the state oil company.

Sheinbaum told reporters that the government has carried out a “meticulous revision” of Pemex and created a “vision” for the future of the company, which last week reported debt of around $99 billion.

“What we have is a comprehensive vision,” said the president, who asserted that by 2027, Pemex won’t require any financial support from the federal Finance Ministry.

Finance Minister: Pemex’s debt to decline 26% below 2019 level by 2030

Finance Minister Édgar Amador Zamora noted that the Finance Ministry, the Energy Ministry, Pemex and federal development bank Banobras worked on the plan for the state oil company.

He presented data that showed that Pemex’s debt increased from $43.3 billion in 2008 to $105.8 billion in 2018, the final year of the administration of former president Enrique Peña Nieto.

Amador said that by the end of this year, Pemex’s debt is forecast to have declined to $88.8 billion, 16% lower than in 2018.

He said that the Comprehensive Capitalization and Financing Strategy, “through a series of efforts” and “operations,” will allow Pemex to reduce its debt by 26% compared to 2019, the first full year of the presidency of Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

The forecast Amador presented showed Pemex’s debt at $77.3 billion in 2030.

He said that the government’s plan, which includes supporting Pemex to make significant debt repayments this year and next, will enable the state oil company to reach a “very sound” liquidity position that will allow it to finance its own operating expenses starting in 2027.

Amador highlighted that the previous federal government, under López Obrador, (gradually) reduced Pemex’s Shared Profit (DUC) levy from 65% to 30%.

“That has contributed to a very significant improvement in the liquidity position, the financial strength … of Petróleos Mexicanos,” he said.

The name of the levy was changed by the Sheinbaum administration to Derecho Petrolero para el Bienestar — a tax on oil for “well-being.”

Sheinbaum stressed that the “well-being” tax on non-associated natural gas is just 12%, and asserted that the low rate “allows Pemex to capitalize.”

She said that in 2025 and 2026 Pemex has to pay “very high amortizations of its debt” as well as interest payments and will therefore require Finance Ministry support in the short term.

“But in 2027, thanks to all the work the Finance Ministry has done, Pemex will go out on its own; it won’t need support from the Finance Ministry,” Sheinbaum said.

Reuters reported that $5.1 billion of Pemex’s bond debt is due for repayment this year, followed by $18.7 billion in 2026 and $7.7 billion in 2027.

The 3 main pillars of the Pemex plan  

Amador said that the Pemex strategy has three main “ejes” (pillars or central tenets).

• The “determination” of the Derecho Petrolero para el Bienestar, set at a rate of 30% for oil and 12% for non-associated natural gas.

Amador said that the lower levy rates “optimize” (i.e. reduce) Pemex’s tax burden and incentivize the company to carry out “a very efficient productive investment strategy in the long term.”

•  Support from the Finance Ministry that allows Pemex to reduce its debt.

Amador noted that the government has already supported the state oil company to pay down its debt, including with last week’s debt offering and cash injections. He indicated that additional support will be provided this year and next, but will cease in 2027.

•  Monetary support to finance “productive investment.”

#Mexico: “Pemex Is at a Crossroads.” Recommended from @CSISAmericas senior associate @ignandez.

Mexico could be a net oil importer by 2030. “The key issue dragging Pemex is its $101 billion debt pile, making it the world’s most indebted oil company.”https://t.co/I9ps6o97Z2 pic.twitter.com/PQqN24fCGh

— Ryan Berg, PhD (@RyanBergPhD) August 1, 2025

Banobras general director Jorge Mendoza Sánchez said that a 250-billion-peso (US $13.3 billion) investment vehicle has been created to fund oil sector projects in 2025 alone.

He said that the “investment fund” will be financed by state-owned development banks, commercial banks and “the investment public in general.”

“… It’s important to mention that this action reaffirms the commitment we have within Banobras and [Mexico’s other] development banks to continue supporting Petróleos Mexicanos,” Mendoza said.

“… It will be an attractive [investment] vehicle and, in addition, it will have a guarantee from the federal government, which will make its financing cost very low,” he said.

Energy minister outlines ‘clear objectives’ of Pemex plan 

Energy Minister Luz Elena González Escobar enumerated a list of “clear objectives” of the 2025-35 plan for Pemex. They include:

• Guaranteeing “stable” oil production of 1.8 million barrels per day.
• Increasing production of “high-value” oil products (gasoline, diesel, jet fuel) in support of the aim of achieving self-sufficiency for fuel.
• “Relaunching” Mexico’s petrochemicals industry and increasing the production of fertilizers “to support food sovereignty.”
• Increasing natural gas production.
• Supporting renewable energy initiatives in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

González asserted that the government’s plan will resolve Pemex’s “structural challenges” and set it up for a successful future.

She also said that “energy sovereignty” is “at the center of the second story of the fourth transformation” — i.e., achieving energy sovereignty is a key priority of the Sheinbaum administration, which says it is continuing the “transformation” initiated by the 2018-24 López Obrador government.

Mexico’s gas production falls short as US imports surge to record levels

Pemex CEO outlines ‘operational plan’ for state oil company

The strategy for Pemex over the next 10 years is “fundamentally” aimed at “increasing the revenue, reducing the costs and improving the financial profile” of the state oil company, said CEO Víctor Rodríguez Padilla.

He said that Pemex would do a range of things to achieve those goals. They include:

• Developing two large Gulf of Mexico oil fields, namely Zama and Trion.
• “Reactivating” oil production at fields that still have “potential.”
• Increasing natural gas production by taking advantage of the “resources we have both in the south and north” of the country.
• “Rebuilding the entire petrochemicals system.”
• Building three new gas pipelines that connect to economic development hubs.
• Resolving gas supply problems on the Yucatán Peninsula.
• Building “four cogeneration plants” in Hidalgo (Tula), Oaxaca (Salina Cruz), Veracruz (Cangrejera) and Tabasco (Nuevo Pemex).
• Improving the “marketing of the products we sell” in order to “have better sales.”
• Developing renewable projects, including solar and wind ones.
• Exploiting lithium resources.

Rodríguez said that Pemex “is and will continue to be a key player in the well-being and sustainable development of the country.”

The state oil company has seven refineries in Mexico, including the recently built Olmeca Refinery on the Tabasco coast. It also owns a refinery in Texas, and operates gas stations across Mexico.

Last week, Pemex reported its first quarterly profit in a year, even as crude and natural gas production declined in annual terms between April and June. An appreciation of the Mexican peso against the US dollar allowed Pemex to overcome a drop in revenues and record a profit in Q2 of 2025.

With reports from El Economista, La Jornada, Milenio, El Universal and Reuters 

The post Inside Pemex’s plan to reach fiscal solvency by 2027 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

Among other remarks, Sheinbaum revealed who will become the next chief of the federal government’s Financial Intelligence Unit.

Sheinbaum denies that Tabasco corruption case is affecting relationship with US

A reporter referred to a report in an “international media outlet” about Senator Adán Augusto López Hernández and his relationship with Hernán Bermúdez, an alleged criminal group leader who served as security minister in Tabasco during the 2019-21 governorship of López Hernández.

She was referring to a New York Times article published under the headline “Corruption Scandal Puts Mexico’s President on Defense Against Trump.”

“Two former officials are on the run, accused of secretly leading a criminal group,” reported the Times, referring to Bermúdez and Leonardo Arturo Leyva Ávalos, ex-general director of the Tabasco state police.

“Their old boss, now a powerful senator in the president’s party, is being grilled over what he knew. And the timing could not be worse for Mexico’s president, who faces the corruption scandal as President Trump doubles down on accusations that drug cartels have the Mexican government in their grip,” the Times’ report continued.

“At the scandal’s center is the senator, Adán Augusto López Hernández, a former interior minister and governor of Tabasco State,” the newspaper said.

Opposition formally accuses AMLO’s ex-interior minister of ties to Tabasco crime gang

The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) last week formally requested that the Federal Attorney General’s Office investigate López Hernández for criminal association.

On Monday morning, the aforementioned reporter told the president that the (New York Times’) report “specifically mentions that this case intensifies or strains the relationship the government of Mexico maintains with the United States.”

She subsequently asked Sheinbaum her opinion on the matter.

“It’s not true,” the president said.

“Regarding this case and any [other] case, we’ve said here we are not going to cover up for anyone, but there must be investigations,” Sheinbaum said.

“… There is no problem of tension [with the United States] related to this,” she declared.

Sheinbaum compared The New York Times’ reporting to a ProPublica article from May, in which journalist Tim Golden referred to a U.S. government “list of several dozen [Mexican] political figures who have been identified by law enforcement and intelligence agencies as having ties to the drug trade.”

“Tim Golden … [claimed] that there was terrible tension [between Mexico and the United States] because there were I don’t know how many people on a list,” she said.

“And then the United States Embassy [in Mexico] released a statement that said: ‘there is no person and no list,'” Sheinbaum said.

“There are people who don’t want there to be a good relationship between Mexico and the United States,” she added.

Sheinbaum acknowledged there are “differences” of opinions between Mexico and the United States, but reiterated that her government seeks a “good relationship” with the Trump administration.

“Firstly, because we’re trade partners and we want the [USMCA] trade agreement to continue and for … [our] economic integration to continue,” she said four days after reaching an agreement with Trump that allowed Mexico to avoid 30% tariffs that were due to take effect last Friday.

“Secondly, because millions of Mexican families live in the United States,” Sheinbaum said.

“… There are those who look for arguments that aren’t real in order to say ‘there is a special tension’ … but there isn’t,” she said.

“In fact, as I have mentioned, there is an agreement we’re about to sign on security issues,” Sheinbaum said, adding that the bilateral pact has “very clear principles” with respect to “sovereignty, mutual confidence and territorial respect.”

The president last week rejected claims that the United States has been pressuring Mexico to hand over politicians with alleged narco links. She also stressed that there is no active investigation against López Hernández, who left his position as governor to become interior minister in the government of former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Sheinbaum announces new Financial Intelligence Unit chief 

Sheinbaum announced that Omar Reyes Colmenares, ex-head of the Prevention and Social Reinsertion unit of the federal Security Ministry, will replace Pablo Gómez as chief of Mexico’s Finance Ministry’s Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF), which plays an important role in the fight against organized crime.

Gómez will move to a role heading up a presidential electoral reform commission.

Sheinbaum said that the appointment of Reyes — who is reportedly “very close” to Security Minister Omar García Harfuch — is subject to approval by the Permanent Commission of the Mexican Congress.

She said that Reyes is “a very intelligent man” who formerly worked “in the area of penitentiary centers.”

Sheinbaum said that he also worked in her Mexico City administration when she was mayor, “first in an intelligence area, and later he was responsible for penitentiary centers.”

“He’s an intelligence specialist,” she said, adding that he is well-suited to the UIF role.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Sheinbaum pushes back on claims of strained US security relations: Monday’s mañanera recapped 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

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 

The post Remittances to Mexico plummet 16.2% in June, the biggest drop in over a decade appeared first on Mexico News Daily

On Sept. 1, she will present her first informe del gobierno, or government report, to the Congress, and in a major speech.

Former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador delivered his sixth and final informe speech last September in front of a large crowd in Mexico City’s Zócalo a month before he finished his six-year term.

Sheinbaum said earlier this week that she has begun preparing her inaugural informe, but she has not yet decided where she will deliver her speech.

On Friday, she presided over her regular morning press conference, a day after reaching a deal with U.S. President Donald Trump that allowed Mexico to avoid a 30% tariff that was scheduled to take effect this Friday Aug. 1.

US has a ‘very big responsibility’ to combat narcotics  because that’s where drug use occurs  

A reporter highlighted that a number of U.S.-based organized crime groups, including the Border Brothers, the Crips, Florencia 13 and the New Mexico Syndicate, are mentioned in the non-fiction book “Los cárteles gringos” by J. Jesús Esquivel.

“However,” the reporter added, “we don’t see significant seizures of drugs” in the United States or the imprisonment of “narco leaders on the other side.”

“Do you think that the fight against drug trafficking is asymmetrical between Mexico and the United States?” the reporter asked the president.

Por si quieren leer algo en estos días… pic.twitter.com/asmwWqBTXU

— J. Jesus Esquivel (@JJesusEsquivel) June 15, 2025

Sheinbaum first stressed that it is up to Mexico to tackle the drug problem in its own territory and the responsibility of the United States to do the same north of the border.

“And we collaborate and coordinate; that’s why there are extradition treaties and other mechanisms for cooperation,” she added.

“… But I’ve mentioned here that the United States, in general, dedicates itself to talking about organized crime in Mexico. They have the right to mention it, but on the other side of the border, who sells the drugs?” Sheinbaum asked.

“Who launders the money?” she asked. “That part has to be investigated.”

Sheinbaum subsequently asserted that the United States has a “very big responsibility” to combat drug use, drug trafficking and associated criminal activity because use of narcotics primarily occurs “on the other side” of the border.

She said that in her call with Trump on Thursday, she and the U.S. leader spoke once again about Mexico’s anti-fentanyl campaign.

“And I told him that we were going to start a campaign against the use of methamphetamine and the harm it causes to young people and to health in general,” Sheinbaum said.

Hoy, 18 de julio de 2025, conmemoramos el 153 Aniversario Luctuoso de Benito Juárez García, Benemérito de las Américas, abogado de origen zapoteco reconocido por ser el primer Ministro indígena en la #SCJN y el primer presidente indígena de #México. Su legado es historia. pic.twitter.com/fEHCK4HWAb

— Hugo Aguilar Ortiz (@HugoAguilarOrti) July 18, 2025

“And he asked me: ‘Do you think these campaigns have helped to keep young people away from drugs?’ And I said, ‘Yes,'” she said.

“I told him about the work we’re doing in schools. And he agreed that, in addition to targeting criminal gangs, there must be attention to the causes [of drug use] and addiction, in particular,” Sheinbaum said.

Is there a ‘we’re going to wipe the cartels off the face of the earth’ clause in the new Mexico-US security agreement? Sheinbaum says no

A reporter noted that U.S. border czar Tom Homan spoke on Thursday about the United States’ intention to “wipe the cartels off the face of the earth.”

“Under Biden the cartels made more money than they ever made — smuggling aliens, sex trafficking of women and children, smuggling dope across the border. Now we have a secure border the cartels are going bankrupt. And President Trump, through all his efforts and his leadership, we’re going to wipe the cartels off the face of the earth, which makes not only this country safer but Mexico safer,” Homan said.

The reporter asked the president whether the intent to “wipe the cartels off the face of the earth” is included in any sense in the new bilateral security agreement Mexico and the United States are set to sign soon.

“It’s their way of talking, right?” said Sheinbaum, who has said on several occasions that Trump has his own unique “way of communicating.”

She said that her government, “within the framework of the law and our constitution,” does what it has to do to prosecute crime.

Sheinbaum subsequently assured reporters that “these words” spoken by Homan “are not established in the agreement” on security that Mexico and the U.S. are set to sign soon.

Sheinbaum happy that Mexico will soon have a new judiciary

On Sept. 1, the same day that Sheinbaum will present her first informe, the candidates elected as judges, magistrates and Supreme Court justices in Mexico’s first (and controversial) judicial elections will assume their positions.

Sheinbaum reiterated on Friday that she will attend the swearing-in ceremony for the new Supreme Court justices, if she is invited.

“Of course we’re very happy about this popular election process for the Supreme Court,” said the president, who argued that judicial elections were needed to rid the nation’s courts of corruption and other ills.

Sheinbaum expressed her belief that the incoming chief justice of the Supreme Court, Hugo Aguilar Ortiz, is “an honest and knowledgable person.”

She also noted that Aguilar, an indigenous lawyer from Oaxaca, has worked to defend indigenous people’s rights during his career.

“Of course we are pleased that the new judiciary is coming in,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Sheinbaum talks US organized crime: Friday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily