32,14 deaths, 268,008 Confirmed Cases

The Ministry of Health said that the total COVID-19 death count in Mexico is now 32,014 while confirmed cases amount to 268,008, of which 26,557 are active. The daily increase was 895 deaths and 6,258 new cases, higher figures that the last two days.

Director of Epidemiology José Luis Alomía reported that hypertension, obesity and diabetes continue to be, in that order, the first three conditions associated with deaths from the virus. Alomía confirmed the availability of hospital beds in both general hospitalization and ICU units.

During today’s briefing, the new health campaign called Health Squad was presented. The new project aims to provide detailed information on the contagion levels and the particular contingency measures that each state must follow.

As of Tuesday, July 7

6,258     new cases (from yesterday)

268,008 confirmed cases nationwide

77,703   under investigation

32,014   deaths

Impact on markets (19.30 hrs)

US Dollar              MX$22.68            (1.56%)

BMV IPC               37,837.39             (-0.13%)

Dow Jones          25,890.18             (-1.51%)

GDP 9.2 percent drop says new survey

The Mexican economy will drop 9.2 percent this year, according to the most recent survey published by Citibanamex that was conducted with 28 financial institutions. This represents a 0.8 percent negative increase compared to its previous survey. In today’s forecast, the GDP contraction ranges from 6.5 to 12 percent for 2020. Barclays gave the most encouraging figure forecasting a 6.5 percent contraction, while the most pessimistic were by Signum Research and Citibanamex with declines of 12 and 11.2 percent  respectively.

Mexican businessmen in the White House

The President’s office confirmed that on Wednesday night, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador will attend a dinner offered by his US counterpart Donald Trump at the White House, along eleven Mexican businessmen. Patricia Armendáriz, Carlos Bremer, Daniel Chávez, Bernardo Gómez, Francisco González, Carlos Hank, Miguel Rincón, Ricardo Salinas, Marcos Shabot, Carlos Slim and Olegario Vázquez will attend the reception.

US leaving WHO in 12 months

The US government announced they started the process to leave the World Health Organization (WHO), whose response to the COVID-19 pandemic was criticized by President Donald Trump. US authorities notified WHO Secretary António Guterres they are leaving on July 2021, a senior official reported. Hours later, Democrat candidate Joe Biden said that if he wins the US Presidency, he will rejoin back into the health organization.

Strengthening measures in neighborhoods

Mexico City government will strengthen sanitary measures in neighborhoods where COVID-19 cases are rising, Head of Government Claudia Sheinbaum said. For the next meeting with mayors she expects to agree on additional measures on a coordinated effort to contain the spread.

Mexico will have good results

Job creation in Mexico will drop 1.0 percent in 2020 and advance just 1.8 percent in 2021 if the country faces a second COVID-19 outbreak this year, OECD has warned. Despite the decline, Mexico will be among the least affected countries by jobs lost, along with Korea, Austria, Germany and Japan, the agency reported.

Bolsonaro tests positive

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro tested positive for COVID-19, following months of downplaying the virus. Bolsonaro himself announced the result, speaking on Brazilian TV. “On Sunday I wasn't feeling very well. On Monday, it got worse feeling tired and with some muscle pain,” he said. Isolation, recovery, and virtual meetings are next for the Brazilian president.