11,394 Health Professionals Infected, 149 Deaths

The Ministry of Health recorded 334 new deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, bringing the total to 5,666 nationwide. An additional 2,713 cases were recorded since yesterday. So far there are 101,979 negative cases recorded from 185,775 tests.

In today’s briefing, Director of Epidemiology José Luis Alomía said 11,394 health professionals have been infected with the virus, recording 149 deaths. Most of these have been doctors.

Regarding increasing reports on the use of Remdesivir on COVID-19 patients, Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell said this drug is still in an experimental phase, although preliminary trials of its use are promising.

As of Tuesday, May 19

2,713     new cases (from yesterday)

54,346   confirmed cases nationwide

29,450   under investigation

5,666     deaths

Impact on markets (19.30 hrs)

US Dollar              MX$23.51            (-0.89%)

BMV IPC               35,862.04             (-3.37%)

Dow Jones          24,206.86             (-1.59%)

Goldman Sachs downgrades Latin America

Economists at Goldman Sachs downgraded the economic outlook for Latin America due to the COVID-19 pandemic and now expect Mexico's GDP to contract 8.5 percent this year and Brazil to plunge 7.4 percent. The bank previously predicted contractions of 5.6 and 3.4 percent respectively for the two biggest economies in the region.

US border restriction extended

Restrictions on non-essential travel on the US-Mexico border will be extended another month until June 22, the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) announced. The partial closure of the US border with Mexico and Canada began on March 21 and affects mostly tourists and people crossing on a regular basis. Trade and other essential activities are not included in the restrictions. CDC will review conditions every 30 days.

Puebla rules out fast automotive industry opening

There are no conditions for the automotive industry to reactivate on June 1 in Puebla, Gov. Miguel Barbosa said. Although the federal government decided automotive sector could resume production starting May 18, Barbosa stated that both Volkswagen and Audi plants, as well as over 150 suppliers, will not resume operations on the scheduled date given the infection rates recorded today.

Mercedes-Benz Nuevo León is ready

Starting Monday, May 18 the German automaker Mercedes-Benz Autobuses will gradually restart operations at its plant in García, Nuevo León, the company said. Operations will resume abiding all health protocols determined by the Federal Government and also aligned with Mercedes-Benz plants worldwide best practices.

PAHO warns of increase cases in The Americas

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said The Americas last week recorded an increase of 14 percent in infections and deaths from COVID-19. In a virtual briefing, PAHO and WHO officer Carissa Etienne reported that on the continent there are already 2 million cases and 121,000 deaths. “The virus is on the rise in our region and we are increasingly concerned about the poor and other vulnerable groups,” she said.

AICM traffic plunges 92 percent

Travel restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 caused passenger movement at Mexico City International Airport (AICM) to register a 92 percent annual comparison drop in passenger movement in April, SCT has reported.