Well, there it is, contrary to what López Obrador wanted, the Bank of Mexico raised the interbank interest rate by 50 basis points, up to 7 percent. If the vote was not unanimous from the Governing Board, it was because Deputy Governor Irene Espinosa considered an increase of 75 base points appropriate.
When there is an expectation of an increase in prices, consumers try to accelerate their consumption in an effort to anticipate the increase. The cost of money rises precisely so that citizens find more incentives to save those resources and not pay high interest rates on consumer loans.
But in a country with such low banking penetration, what counts, as much as the monetary policy decision, is the confidence that the Bank of Mexico is doing something against inflation and therefore it is possible to believe that there will be greater price stability.
However, if the fight against inflation is moved to the platform where the political and social life of the country is most polarized, the neutrality of the fight against inflation is removed and it becomes one more of the propaganda strategies of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. .
The most recent National Survey of Financial Inclusion reveals that almost 80% of adults in Mexico use cash to make payments of more than 500 pesos, only 33% of the population has credit and less than half have a formal account in the system. Mexican financier.
So, with this scenario, the power of monetary policy weighs more in the message of credibility in Banxico than the real effect of an increase in the interbank interest rate.
Of course, there is a part of the financial markets that, although less numerous, does suffer from the level of the cost of money and has a lot of influence on the Mexican economy, but it is essential that the Bank of Mexico does not lose its place as a benchmark and Vaca Sagrada of inflationary control.
López Obrador uses the issue as a simple propaganda tool. Yesterday morning, just on the day that it was the central bank’s turn to be the protagonist of the fight against inflation, the President’s official twitter account called the parishioners to the daily homily with this message:
“We work to control inflation and avoid shortages. Morning press conference from the National Palace”.
Thus, reduced to a simple advertising slogan, they assume that it is in the Palace where they fight and work to control inflation.
Of course, inflation was not the theme of the morning staging, but rather its new polarizing banner of boycotting the Summit of the Americas. But the message remained there as proof of the desire to want to control everything from the presidential house.
What does the President expect to happen with inflation? Of course, he will soon hit a ceiling, as could have already happened in the United States, and that any data that implies a depressurization can be awarded as a triumph of his own.
The Bank of Mexico does not need medals for its work, but neither does it need political obstacles in its delicate task.
Televisa News Anchor
The great Depression
Bachelor of Communication Sciences from the National Autonomous University of Mexico, with a specialty in finance from the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico and a master’s degree in Journalism from the Anahuac University.
His professional career has been dedicated to different media. He is currently a columnist for the newspaper El Economista and news anchor on Televisa. He is the owner of the 2 pm news space on Foro TV.
He is a specialist in economic-financial issues with more than 25 years of experience as a commentator and host on radio and television. He has been part of companies such as Radio Programas de México, where he participated in VIP business radio. He was also part of the management and talent team of Radio Formula.