By Walter Brandimarte
NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Mexico expects the amount of foreign direct investment to drop anywhere from 10 percent to 20 percent in 2009, Deputy Finance Minister Alejandro Werner told investors on Thursday.
'For next year, we are expecting a significant decline in FDI that could be anywhere between 10 and 20 percent,' Werner said during a speech to the annual meeting of EMTA, an association of emerging markets investors, traders, and economists.
On Nov. 21, the government said FDI fell 15.4 percent in the first nine months of 2008 amid the global financial crisis and the recession in the United States. Mexico is America's top trading partner.
Foreign companies from the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia invested $15.56 billion in Mexico from January to September. The government said in November that it expects FDI to reach about $20 billion. In 2007 FDI hit $27 billion, the second highest level since the ministry began publishing investment data.
On Thursday, Werner also said remittances by Mexican's working abroad have proven 'resilient'.
'In terms of remittances, they have proven to be more resilient than what we expected. We have moved from a two-digit growth rate two years ago to an average zero growth or slight decline now,' he said.
(Reporting by Walter Brandimarte; Writing by Daniel Bases; Editing by Diane Craft) Keywords: MEXICO FDI/WERNER (daniel.bases@reuters.com; +1 646 223 6131; Reuters Messaging: daniel.bases.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
NEW YORK, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Mexico expects the amount of foreign direct investment to drop anywhere from 10 percent to 20 percent in 2009, Deputy Finance Minister Alejandro Werner told investors on Thursday.
'For next year, we are expecting a significant decline in FDI that could be anywhere between 10 and 20 percent,' Werner said during a speech to the annual meeting of EMTA, an association of emerging markets investors, traders, and economists.
On Nov. 21, the government said FDI fell 15.4 percent in the first nine months of 2008 amid the global financial crisis and the recession in the United States. Mexico is America's top trading partner.
Foreign companies from the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia invested $15.56 billion in Mexico from January to September. The government said in November that it expects FDI to reach about $20 billion. In 2007 FDI hit $27 billion, the second highest level since the ministry began publishing investment data.
On Thursday, Werner also said remittances by Mexican's working abroad have proven 'resilient'.
'In terms of remittances, they have proven to be more resilient than what we expected. We have moved from a two-digit growth rate two years ago to an average zero growth or slight decline now,' he said.
(Reporting by Walter Brandimarte; Writing by Daniel Bases; Editing by Diane Craft) Keywords: MEXICO FDI/WERNER (daniel.bases@reuters.com; +1 646 223 6131; Reuters Messaging: daniel.bases.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2008. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.