01 March /17

THE FARMING SECTOR IS CRUCIAL TO OUR ECONOMY (MILENIO ESTADO DE MÉXICO 13) During the first session of the State Farming Council, Heriberto Ortega Ramírez, head of the Ministry of Farming Development (Sedagro; Secretaría de Desarrollo Agropecuario), noted that the share in GDP and exports of the agrifood sector has grown above the national average. He also highlighted that together with the agrifood industry, the Alta Productividad de Maíz program has made it possible to double manufacturing in the past five years, and that the grain produced meets the quality requirements of the food and manufacturing (Maseca and la Moderna) industries.

MADE IN MEXICO (TV NOTAS 122-125) During the month of February, the Federal Government and businessmen relaunched “Hecho en México”  branding to set products manufactured in Mexico apart from items made elsewhere, and to facilitate competitiveness among national companies.  The “Hecho en México”, brand will highlight more than 3,700 products made with 100 percent Mexican inputs. More products are expected to be added in the coming months. Among the products showcased there is an image of “Maseca corn flour: from Nuevo León, nixtamalized corn flour”. www.gruma.com

02 marzo /17

IENOVA AND PEÑOLES: 2016 IPC WINNERS (EL ECONOMISTA PP-4-5) The season for 4Q financial reports and 2016 consolidated figures has ended for issuers in the IPC... Table: Yields from IPC Issuers: 2016 vs. 2015 (%)Gruma appears among the best performers with 677.36 in net profit.

HÉCTOR ROMERO: QUARTERLY PERFORMANCE OF COMPANIES IN THE MEXICAN STOCK EXCHANGE (BMV) (MÉXICO GLOBAL CON CARLOS MOTA) During an interview, Héctor Romero, analyst and CEO of Signum Research, discussed the quarterly performance of companies in the Mexican Stock Exchange… He mentioned that the outlook for the consumer goods sector is not great due to noticeable desacceleration. Nevertheless, also regarding performance in the sector he said, “We saw great surprises for example inGruma, an excellent surprise in Bachoco, and a very good surprise in Bimbo”. He also pointed out that the consumer goods sector accounts for two thirds of the economy, so the results mentioned previously are very pleasant.

03 March /17

 TORTILLAS – AN ESSENTIAL PART OF MALE HEALTH (MILENIO DIARIO DE MONTERREY.COM) Protein, vitamin and carbohydrate calorie requirements  differ greatly between men and women; men usually require more nutrients. One of the best sources for these nutrients are tortillas,especially those made from fortified corn flour.As part of the month devoted to men, the Mexican health sector launched a campaign focusing on male health. Physician Yuriana Reyes Castañón explained that it is difficult to find a more complete food than tortillas, which can help men reduce their risk for prostate cancer and cardiovascular disease. It’s important to highlight thatthe tortilla manufacturing input market in Mexico is divided as follows: Nixtamal has a 65% share,Maseca25%, Minsa 8%, Harimasa has 1%, Cargill  0.50%, Macsa 0.40%, and Blancas 0.20%.

 ISSUERS ARE HIT BY PESO DEPRECIATION (EL ECONOMISTA 1-8) The food sector also saw a positive balance on account of a weak Mexican peso.Gruma the corn flour producer showed a 24% increase in sales (to 18,819 million pesos) during Q4 of 2016. Meanwhile EBITDA rose 19.97% to 10,964 millions of pesos.Gruma’spositive results derived from sales to the United States and Central America which benefited from the depreciation of the Mexican peso.

 HÉCTOR ROMERO/VERÓNICA REYES/PERSPECTIVES WITH SIGNUM RESEARCH (EL ECONOMISTA 6) We can say that the 2016 season for Q4 reports has ended with much better results than expected… What makes this report stand out is that despite headwinds, on average, companies achieved double digit growth in terms of revenue as well as EBITDA…GRUMA showedan excellent report, with 24% growth in revenue and 22% in EBITDA, driven by advantages in the exchange rate brought about by its operations abroad.

06 March /17

STOCK MARKET (EL ECONOMISTA 7)GRUMA.Gruma stock closed at 267 pesos for second week in a row. Last week,GRUMA sharesrose 0.11% to 267.35 pesos.

09 marzo /17

 GOOD EXPECTATIONS FOR GRUMA TITLES IN 2017(EL ECONOMISTA.COM) AfterJuan González Moreno’s Grumasubmitted its financial results for 4Q16, analysts from several financial groups and exchanges repeated their recommendations to purchase Gruma shares, which will continue to benefit from the effects of currency exchange, but also from greater sales volumes in the United States. In line with these recommendations made by institutitions like Grupo Santander, BBVA, JP Morgan, Barclays, and Citibanamex, it is expected that company titles in the Mexican Stock Exchange will be priced at up to 321 pesos each, according to the target price assigned by UBS.

13 marzo /17

TRADE. FORGOTTEN MARKETS (EL UNIVERSAL 1-5) Products made in Mexico do not travel far. It is only recently that a few of them are being exported to Asia. Yet there are forgotten markets like Africa and the Middle East that are difficult to reach due to high logistical costs and lack of knowledge about these regions… Carlos Sánchez, minister of ProMéxico for Europe and Africa, mentioned that Kidzania will soon come to South Africa, and thatGruma and Bimbo have a presence in Africa...

ASIA, A REGION WITH GREAT APPEAL (EL UNIVERSAL 5) In light of potentially changing trade rules with the United States due to NAFTA renegotiations, the most viable path for Mexico will be to find new export markets. The Asia Pacific region appears to be the best choice, because other continents are not really an option. The chairman of the Committe for Asia of the Mexican Foreign Trade Business Council (Comce; Consejo Empresarial Mexicano de Comercio Exterior), ambassador Sergio Ley, explained that… there is still a lot of work to do regarding China.  First of all we need to research which products can reach the Chinese market and look into success stories such as Bose,Gruma, Bimbo, and others.

PASCAL BELTRÁN DEL RÍO/ DIRECTOR’S BLOG (EXCÉLSIOR 2)… In its response to Trump’s attack against NAFTA, the Mexican government has underused the argument that Mexico has not taken away a significant number of US jobs (if we compare this figure with data on the automation of US industry). And not only that, but Mexican as well as German companies, employ tens of thousands of US workers…Gruma is another Mexican company that has reaped great benefits from its US operations, where it holds almost half of the tortilla market there, which is currently growing 5% each year. According to company data,Gruma has more plants in the United States than in Mexico, from Fife, Washington, to Lakeland, Florida. Last year, the company reported to the Mexican Stock Exchange increased sales thanks to improved performance in its subsidiaries, “particularlyGruma US”…

20 March /17

TRENDS (EL ECONOMISTA 7)GRUMA. The food company’s shares in the BMW (Mexican Stock Exchange) had a 0.61% increase in yield for the week. Their price was 261.91 pesos per share.

22 March /17

ALBERTO BARRANCO/BUSINESS (EL UNIVERSAL 4) …The main destination in the UE for Mexican products is Italy, followed by Spain.   Trade with the latter amounted to 7,737 million dollars last year... A key part will involve mutually protecting investments in a scenario where a dozen Mexican companies are present. Thus, Bimbo, Cementos Mexicanos, America Movil, Mexichem,Grupo Maseca…

24 marzo /17

 JUAN GONZÁLEZ MORENO’s GRUMA MAINTAINS ITS GLOBAL BET (NEWSWEEK EN ESPAÑOL ONLINE 0) In the midst of international trends towards economic protectionism,Gruma (underJuan González Moreno), continues to bet on globalizing its brands and expanding its geographic presence.  Until now, this international leader in corn flour, tortilla and wrap production has 79 production plants around the world: 24 in Mexico, 29 in United States, 5 in Costa Rica, 2 in Guatemala, 1 in El Salvador, 1 in Nicaragua, 1 in Ecuador, and another 2 in Honduras. The company also has 2 plants in the United Kingdom, 2 in Spain, 2 in Holand, 1 in Italy, 2 in Russia, 1 in Turkey, 1 in Ukrane, 1 in China, 1 in Malaysia, and 1 in Australia.Gruma is a pioneer in conquering the Asian market where it has operated for more than ten years.  It opened its first plant in China in September, 2006 and later reinforced this presence when it opened an additional plant in Malaysia, in October last year.

27 March /17

 CAPITAL MARKETS (EL ECONOMISTA 7)GRUMA. The leading company in corn and tortilla production had a discreet 0.84% growth this week in its shares in the Mexican Stock Exchange (BMV). GBMhomebroker considers GRUMA’s perspectives are greater than the local securities market.

29 marzo /17

 INCAN “OPENS FIRE” AGAINST CANCER (MILENIO LAGUNA ONLINE 0) Funds raised by the third “Cancerotón” held in Torreón will help build a clinic for early cancer detection and prevention, as well as organize the next edition of the fundraiser in Puebla. Consequently, next Tuesday the board of the National Cancer Institute (INCAN), Grupo Multimedios, and Milenio Televisión will hold the groundbreaking ceremony for what will become the early detection and prevention cancer clinic in Torreón. The 30 million 402 thousand-peso investment was contributed by the population at large, the business community and governments committed to this altruistic endeavor. Other participants in this INCAN initiative included private citizens and companies such as Fundación Lala, AHMSA, Delta Electric, Cemex,Gruma, Kreativ, Farmacias del Ahorro, Banorte, Simsa, Cimaco, and Telmex, among others.

30 marzo /17

MASECA LAUNCHES A NEW HIGH-FIBER PRODUCT (NESNEWSINAMERICA.COM)Maseca(Costa Rica) innovates again to provide its consumers nutritious products made with 100% pure corn. This time,Maseca added fiber to its original recipie on account of its important health benefits. High fiber Maseca is a product ideally suited to promote good digestive health and nutrition for everyone in the family. According to Maseca’s nutritionist, Nazanin MedhiKhan, fiber is an important part of a healthy and balanced diet. A daily intake of 25 to 30 grams of fiber is recommended in combination with all other food groups necessary for optimal performance, and in addition to drinking an appropriate amount of fluids.