Mexico economy contracts 0.8% during the first quarter

Mexico's economy contracted 0.8% in the first quarter, according to preliminary INEGI data released midday on April 30. This exceeded the 0.5% contraction forecast by Reuters economists and follows a 0.9% expansion in the prior quarter. The broad decline across all sectors signals a sharper-than-anticipated slowdown for Latin America's second-largest economy.

### Broad Sector Declines Hit Primary Production Hardest Every sector in the Mexican economy registered a sequential decline during the first three months of the year. The primary sector, which includes agriculture, saw the sharpest dip with a 1.4% decrease.