January 8

 UK SEEKS TO NEGOTIATE AMBITIOUS TRADE DEAL WITH MEXICO (ElPorvenir.mx) From 2013 to 2016, the United Kingdom invested GBP 3.6 billion in Mexico, ranking it seventh in terms of the largest sources of Foreign Direct Investment in Mexico. The British companies investing most are Astra Zeneca, BP, Diageo, HSBC, Shell, and Unilever. Meanwhile, the largest Mexican companies to establish operations in the U.K. include Bimbo, Cemex, Gruma, Kidzania, Mexichem, and Monex.

January 9

 SISTINE CHAPEL REPLICA ARRIVES IN PACHUCA (La Razón pg. 20) (Siempre pg. 43) The replica of the Sistine Chapel arrives this month at Ben Gurión Park in Pachuca, Hidalgo. Visitors can enjoy the traveling exhibit for free from January 13 to February 10. Governor Omar Fayad of Hidalgo labeled the arrival of the exhibit as a historical event since it has stopped at places such as Mexico City and Merida. This is the ninth exhibition of the replica in Mexico, and its main sponsors are Maseca and Banorte.

COMPANIES UTILIZED TO COMMIT FRAUD (Reforma pg. 6) Using emails, announcements, and fake websites, companies in Mexico have detected being utilized to commit fraud in their name. The illegal activity initially focused on the sale of vehicles because of supposed fleet renewals. However, the practice has extended to offering employment and charging for recruitment. The companies have given warnings on their websites that they have detected people using their company name to ask for money for fake recruitment of personnel. Companies issuing alerts include Grupo Danone, Grupo Maseca, Grupo México, Jumex, Kia Motors México, and Heineken México.

January 14

 TRENDS (El Economista pg. 7) Gruma. This week the share price of the world’s largest corn flour producer rose by 1.36%, up to MXN 224.95 from MXN 221.93. The price rose 0.53% during Friday’s operations.

January 16

 COMPANIES OPEN THEIR DOORS TO UNEMPLOYED YOUTH (Reforma pg. 3) (Reforma Online) (El Norte Online) Several companies have signed an agreement with the Secretary of Labor to take in young adults who will be part of the program “Youth Building the Future.” Companies participating are Alfa, Arca Continental, Banorte, Bimbo, Cemex, Compartamos, DeAcero, Femsa, Grupo Prodensa, Gruma, and Xignux. The program was designed to employ and train youth who are not in school and not working. They will receive a monthly stipend of MXN 3,600 from the federal government.

January 17

 BUY / HOLD / SELL. (Forbes México pg. 12) Gruma. The company is forecast to post a 6% increase in EBITDA following a positive performance from its U.S. business division (55% of revenue) and in Europe, where it has greater market share. In Mexico, strong consumption is expected.

MARKET PORTFOLIO: WHAT’S BEHIND MASECA? (Merca20.com) More than nine million people in the United States consumed products from the Mexican flour company Maseca in 2018, which made it the fifth most-purchased company in the U.S. flour sector. The history of Maseca began in 1949 when the first production plant of nixtamalized corn flour was founded in Nuevo Leon. The product was named Maseca from the start. As the years went by, the company became an essential product in the Mexican diet. By the end of the ‘80s, the brand entered the Central American market. Currently, Maseca has a global presence and is a major player in the market for snacks, cereal, and beer, through corn grits in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

ALBERTO BARRANCO / COMPANIES. (El Universal pg. 4) In Solidarity. Although the word apprentice does not appear in its name, which would imply that companies duly compensate them as required by the Federal Labor Act, a dozen large companies already signed up for the “Youth Building the Future” program. The young workers will receive a monthly stipend of MXN 3,600 for their training. The list of companies committed to the program includes Cementos Mexicanos, Fomento Económico Mexicano, Grupo Alfa, and Grupo Bimbo, all headquartered in Monterrey. Also joining are the companies Grupo Maseca, beverage company Arca Continental, Grupo Salinas, Grupo Prodensa, the metal company DeAcero, and the banks Banorte and Compartamos.

January 18

 MASECA, THE FIFTH MOST, PURCHASED BRAND IN THE UNITED STATES (SDP Noticias Online) In 2018, more than 9.5 million consumers purchased Maseca products, which makes Gruma, the Mexican company led by Juan González Moreno, the fifth-most consumed brand within the U.S. flour sector. (...) Researchers from the Center for Prevention of Spina Bifida at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia have demonstrated that out of the 20 brands of corn flour sold in the United States, only two brands contain folic acid, one of those brands being Maseca.

January 21

 TRENDS. (El Economista pg. 7) GRUMA. The share price of the world’s largest corn flour producer rose by 2.31% from January 14-18, up to MXN 230.15 from MXN 224.95. The company share price is up 3.3.% on the year.

January 24

 GRUMA, METALSA AND SUKARNE LOOK TO BENEFIT FROM THE CPTPP (El Economista, pg. 22)(Article with page one headline)Gruma, Metalsa, and SuKarne plan to take advantage of the opportunities within the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), says Sergio Ley, president of the Asia and Oceania chapter of the Mexican Council on Foreign Trade (COMCE, acronym in Spanish). Maseca has facilities in Malaysia to produce tortillas, fried snacks and flatbreads to distribute throughout Asia, aside from its facilities in China. Gruma began operations in Malaysia in 2007 through the purchase of a plant specialized in the production of flatbreads (wraps, pita bread, pizza discs, naan, and flour tortillas.). It has been producing high-quality products ever since. In 2013, it made the record books when its global brand Mission made the largest wrap in history, measuring 814 feet long.

January 28

 MARKET FOR SECURITIES LENDING EMERGING IN MEXICO (El Economista pg. 8-9) The initiative to allow retirement funds to participate in securities lending is positive since, if approved, it would increase the size and liquidity of the local securities market. However, stock market specialists explain that the benefits won’t be immediate. In general, securities lending is done with shares with medium to high marketability, such as shares of América Móvil, Gruma, or Cementos Mexicanos.

CARLOS PONCE B. / EXECUTIVES ON THE EXCHANGE. (El Economista pg. 15) There are 150 listed companies on the Mexican stock exchange. We calculated the average performance of the 30 and 50 best stocks each year over the same six-year period. The 30 and 50 best stocks performed at 42.38% and 29.30% respectively. While some see very little trading activity, 30 and 50 listed companies per year are a representative sample to validate the enormous difference between the group of winners and the IPC index. Gruma posted gains of 53.67% in 2015, 59.26% in 2014, and 152.18% in 2013.

January 31

 MEXICO AND SPAIN, PARTNERS FOR A SHARED FUTURE (El Financiero pg. 12) The visit from Spanish President Pedro Sánchez happened at an unusually high moment for Mexico and Spain, almost 42 years after the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. A look at the numbers backs this argument. The trade balance in 2017 exceeded USD 9 billion, making Spain the second largest investor in Mexico, and Mexico, the second-largest investor in Spain, outside of the European community. Business leaders such as Carlos Slim, Alberto Torrado, Valentín Diez Morodo, Allen Sanginés Krause, and Carlos Fernández, along with companies like ADO, Alsea, Bimbo, Cemex, Gruma, Grupo Sigma, and RLH, are some of the names that have led Mexico’s investment in Spain the past 10 years, further strengthening the ties of this bilateral relationship.