Summary:
Latest figures released by the national statistics agency of Mexico shows that a record trade surplus in July as exports of automotive and other manufactured goods gathered steam after the coronavirus lockdown was loosened, while imports remained weak.
Adjusted for seasonal swings, the trade surplus widened to $6.752 billion last month, beating the prior record set in June by more than $2 billion, the data showed.
After collapsing early in the pandemic, exports have made up much of the ground lost in the last few weeks, but still fell in July by 8.9 percent compared to the same month last year. By contrast, imports were down by 26.1 percent from July 2019.
The Mexican central bank said on Wednesday the economy could contract by up to 12.8 percent this year.
In unadjusted terms, Mexico`s trade surplus was $5.799 billion last month.