Faced with a general slowdown, services in Mexico consolidated themselves as the most dynamic engine of the economy in the second quarter, with an accumulated annual growth of 0.4%, BBVA México revealed this Wednesday.
The advance of primary activities (4.5%) and tertiary activities (1.1%) act as “shock absorbers of the cycle”, in the face of a national economic environment that combines “tariff uncertainty” with the United States, and “the reduction of public spending on infrastructure and an internal environment of moderate investment”, according to the most recent report from the financial group ‘Regional-Sectoral Situation’.
For the period, the sectors with the highest growth were business support with 14.1%, followed by professionals (12.3%), recreation (10%), agriculture (4.5%) and health (3.6%).
While the imposition of tariffs by the US in the first half of the year caused a 2.1% contraction of the Mexican automotive industry, which contributes 4.9% of the country’s total GDP, and also manufacturing, which contributes 23.6%.
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“Despite this adverse environment, the domestic market showed resilience: local sales grew 3.8% annually, with a 14.8% increase in automotive credit and a greater preference for hybrid and electric vehicles, whose sales rose 38.5%,” the report highlighted.
Although he warned that the new tariffs of between 10% and 50% on imports from Asia could “put pressure on inflation and the purchase of units by lower-income segments.”
The report also highlighted that business credit had an annual drop of 0.4%, despite the reduction of the reference rate from 10 to 8%, especially in manufacturing, construction and real estate, and warned that the reactivation of the domestic market is subject to “formalization and financial impulse.”
To this, he added that exports “decreased 2.8% in units and 3.8% in value, mainly affecting shipments to the US market, which concentrates 80% of foreign sales.”
Given external uncertainty, low manufacturing dynamism and cautious consumption, BBVA maintained that small and medium-sized businesses (MSMEs) in Mexico “are key to sustaining the internal market,” since they represent 71.3% of employment and 45.7% of the value added in the economy.
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Regarding this, the growth of MSMEs in Puebla (23.5%), Hidalgo (20.9%) and the State of Mexico (20%) stood out, while the Mexican capital showed a slight decline (0.6%), according to figures from 2018 to 2024.
The report also warned that the regional panorama shows an uneven economic recovery, where Guerrero (6.8%) and Oaxaca (5.6%) have picked up growth, while Tabasco (-4.3%) and Campeche (-3.2%) face declines.
Due to the promotion of tourism and business services, the north and center of the country in states such as Mexico City (1.8%), Zacatecas (1.6%) and Baja California Sur (1.3%) maintain their resilience.
With information from EFE
