At the end of 2021, the fortune of Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim reached 1.91 billion pesos, the highest figure since records have been recorded. The traction engine in the advancement of the Mexican tycoon’s wealth was the telephone company América Móvil (AMX), which contributed 74% of the market value, followed by Grupo Financiero Inbursa and Carso, with 8.0% and 7.8%, respectively. Of the four quarters of 2021, in the last three the fortune of the richest man in Mexico grew steadily, according to the Slim Index prepared quarterly by El Economista.
In 2021, compared to 2020, the 82-year-old tycoon’s fortune increased by 445,176 million pesos, about 1,237 million pesos every day, or 51.5 million pesos every hour. Considering only the fourth quarter of 2021, compared to the same period of 2020 the increase was 84%, the largest increase since the third quarter of 2014, when it increased 274,349 million pesos. Although this result has to do with the low base of comparison of the most critical year of the pandemic, it also shows that the strategy applied by the Mexican businessman allowed him to adapt and take advantage of the economic recovery in an important way.
América Móvil, the giant that grew larger during the pandemic, contributed 207.946 million pesos to Slim’s fortune in the fourth quarter, the largest increase in the telephone company since the third quarter of 2014, Grupo Financiero Inbursa and Telesites, although they increased in Importantly, its market value in the last third of the year looks small given the impact of the Mexican telephone company.
The sales reports of Slim’s companies showed rising income, in 2021 they reached 1.06 billion pesos, 4.7% above what was registered a year earlier, which with a considerable reduction in the exchange rate fluctuation led to reaching the record figure in net income of 233,515 million pesos, 305% above that registered a year before.
In the report for the fourth quarter of 2021, América Móvil indicates that the net profit for the quarter was 135,589 million pesos and includes the net profit generated by TracFone until the day of sale (November 23, 2021), as well as the profit generated by the sale under the same for 112,700 million pesos, with which the net profit for the year was 196,028 million pesos and when considering only continuing operations it was 70,712 million pesos, an increase of 136.8 % more than the previous year, they emphasize that it is a “net profit from discontinued operations”.
Good reports in the rest of the companies
Grupo Carso, at the end of 2021, registered sales of 124,926 million pesos, 32% more than a year before, a considerable reduction in the exchange fluctuation that allowed it to achieve a net profit of 11,238 million pesos, 97% more than a year before . In this result, the most outstanding participation was Grupo Sanborns, which recovered its affluence with consumers returning to department stores and restaurants. In Grupo Condumex, the sale of cables both to the domestic market and for export increased significantly, Carso Infraestructura y Construcción carried out a greater volume of wells and Carso Energy continued to increase its sales thanks to the Samalayuca Sásabe gas pipeline, which is working regularly.
Grupo Financiero Inbursa, although it did not improve its income throughout 2021, ended with a net profit of 20,892 million pesos, 65% more than in 2020. While Minera Frisco, IDEAL and Telesites, although they received net income above of those registered a year earlier, ended with negative variations in net income, although in the case of Frisco, it only managed to reduce the negative result of a year earlier.
During the fourth quarter of 2021, concerns about the rise in inflation in the world kept financial markets alert to possible implications for monetary policies. With 10-year Treasury yields fluctuating in a range of up to 35 basis points, and despite volatility in interest rates, capital markets continued to advance. In the Latin American region, the Mexican, Colombian and Chilean pesos were very volatile in the second half of November, however, the Mexican peso fully recovered towards the end of the year and the other two currencies continued to depreciate.
2022 began with better expectations for the reactivation of economic activity, however, the rise in inflation to levels of more than 40 years ago in the main economies of the world, anticipate the tightening of monetary policy, with estimated increases in interest rates. interest rates of up to 50 basis points, the impact on economic activity could be considerable.
Although Carlos Slim does not own all the shares of the companies in the Slim Index, he does have an important influence on the design of their investment strategies, in addition to being an important reference for business in Mexico, as well as outside the country. .