Mexico: Mexico's overseas sales contract for fifth consecutive month
December 24, 2015
Mexico’s trade deficit totaled USD 1.6 billion in November. This result came in below the USD 1.0 billion registered in November 2014, but was better than the USD 2.2 billion shortfall the markets had expected.
The trade deficit in November drove the 12-month rolling shortfall to USD 13.3 billion (October: USD 12.7 billion deficit), which represented the highest deficit since August 2009. The widening of the accumulated trade deficit has been mainly driven by a continuous deterioration in the oil trade balance.
Mexico’s shipments abroad suffered another contraction in November. Overseas sales totaled USD 31.0 billion in November, which marked a 4.1% contraction in year-on-year terms. Although the drop was slower than October’s 7.4% decrease, it marked a fifth consecutive month of decline. Meanwhile, imports totaled USD 32.6 billion in November, which represented a 2.4% decrease on an annual basis.
Author: Ricardo Aceves, Senior Economist