When President Peña Nieto was sworn in, there was hope that Mexico would rise above the 2.4 percent average annual growth rate it has had for the last 30 years and take off.
Although the country weathered the 2008 global recession better than many other countries and has a more solid macroeconomic base than countries such as Brazil and Russia, growth in 2013 failed to meet expectations. This sluggish economic performance, compounded by a downturn in the US economy, turbulent international markets and a loss of domestic consumer confidence continued into the first quarter of 2014, causing the Bank of Mexico and the OECD to revise their 2014 growth forecasts down to 2.7 percent
Nevertheless, in May 2014, exports rose by 4.7 percent (source: INEGI) and other recent economic indicators appear to indicate that growth may be picking up once more. Mexican economists and international analysts expect prospects to improve in the rest of the year and better annual growth rates of between four and five percent (estimates) in the coming years.
