Mexico’s Economy Continues to Slump

A retired Harvard professor, Jorge I. Dominguez taught for more than 45 years in the university’s Department of Government. Throughout his career, Jorge Dominguez has focused his teaching and research on politics and international affairs in Latin American countries, including Mexico.

According to a recent quarterly report from the Banco de Mexico, Mexico’s economy is expected to contract even further after already experiencing its deepest slump since the Great Depression. While it is uncertain exactly how much the country’s GDP could continue to shrink, the best-case projections estimate a fall of 8.8 percent by the end of 2020.

Like other countries worldwide, the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact in Mexico, but the country, which has the second-largest economy in Latin America, has taken a much harder economic hit than its Latin American peers. Economists have placed some blame on President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who has resisted borrowing money to stimulate the economy.

The fiscally conservative president has defended his handling of the economy, saying that his plan will lead to recovery without getting the country over-indebted. Concerns over the economic downturn, however, have taken a hit on Lopez Obrador’s approval rating, which recent polls showed had dipped to its lowest point since he took office in late 2018.