62,076 Deaths, 573,888 Positive Cases

The Ministry of Health reported 626 deaths from COVID-19 in the last 24 hours, raising the death toll to 62,076. A further 5,267 infections were confirmed yesterday, increasing the national total to 573,888 positive cases.

During today’s briefing, Deputy Minister of Health Hugo López-Gatell highlighted that there is no prejudice against the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Russia, although he admitted that the news of its fast development took him by surprise. “No one in the world knows (the vaccine’s development conditions) so far. It all depends on the vaccine’s efficacy,” he said.

Director of Epidemiology José Luis Alomía reported that all states in the country have hospital bed availability for both general hospitalization and ICU with ventilators.

Confirmed cases worldwide have escalated to over 24 million and 822,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University (JHU) data.

As of Wednesday, August 26

5,267 new cases (as of yesterday)

573,888 confirmed cases nationwide

81,466 cases under investigation

62,076 deaths

Impact on markets (19.30 hrs)

US Dollar              MX$21.95            (-0.10%)

BMV IPC               37,753.04             (-1.30%)

Dow Jones          28,331.92             (1.35%)

Banxico Trims Growth Forecast

In 2020, Mexico will have its worst economic contraction since 1932, according to Banxico’s new forecast. The central bank estimates that in the best scenario, a “V” type recovery will drive the GDP to fall only 8.8 percent. In the worst forecast or a “deep U,” GDP will sink 12.8 percent. Meanwhile, the “deep V” recovery scenario forecasts a 11.3 percent contraction for the Mexican economy in 2020.

Liomont Aims for 250 Million Vaccines

Laboratorios Liomont’s plant, located in Ocoyoacac, State of Mexico, will manufacture up to 250 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in 2021, the Mexican company has reported. Vaccines will be distributed in Mexico and all other Latin American and Caribbean countries, following the agreement signed by the Carlos Slim Foundation, AstraZenaca and the University of Oxford. Clinical results of the potential vaccine, currently in Phase 3, are expected in November.

Mexican Stock

Contrary to strong results reported in Wall Street and other major stock markets, the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV) closed today with heavy losses after IPC and BIVA plunged 1.30 and 1.21 percent respectively. While uncertainty led investors during today’s trading in Mexico, in the US the S&P500 recorded its fourth consecutive record and NASDAQ also set a new all-time high.

Jansen Tests Vaccine in South America

Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Peru were chosen by the Belgian laboratory Jansen to carry out tests of its COVID-19 vaccine on about 60,000 volunteers, according to media reports. The four nations have recorded the largest number of cases in South America, with Brazil as the second country with the most cases and deaths in the world.

ECLAL Warns About Digital Gaps

The COVID-19 pandemic has uncovered deep gaps in Latin America regarding internet access and digital technologies, with only a third of poor households in the region formally connected, ECLAC reported. The UN’s office stated that 66.7 percent of the region's inhabitants had an open internet connection in 2019, while the rest depended on either limited connections or had not access at all.

Merck’s Experimental Antiviral

Merck’s experimental antiviral pill has the potential to replace other licensed COVID-19 treatments, the company reported. Results from mid-stage studies are raising optimism among experts that the new drug will hit the market before the end of the year.