President Andrés Manuel López Obrador knows he is the Secretary of the Treasury and only uses the technicians to shape what he dictates should be done with the income, but above all with the expenses of the federal government.
What López Obrador cannot do is assume himself now as the governor of the Bank of Mexico. Moreover, assume itself as the Bank of Mexico.
This regime can do all the propaganda it wants with its anti-inflation program, front pages and interviews, all very well. What the President cannot do is believe that his plan is for the Bank of Mexico not to raise the interest rate.
There are antecedents that leave reasonable doubt regarding the respect for the autonomy of the Bank of Mexico by López Obrador. The most serious was that advance in the National Palace of the last monetary policy decision.
It must be taken very seriously that President López Obrador believes that his Package Against Inflation and Scarcity (Pacic) is enough to replace the monetary policy of the Bank of Mexico.
It seems nonsense, but it will not be the first that we hear and it is executed in these times. 4T believed that its Santa Lucía air terminal replaced the Texcoco Airport. The regime was sure that Insabi would replace Seguro Popular. They believed that their courageous honesty was a substitute for buying medicine. They thought that grandparents were a replacement for children’s rooms. Etc.
At the very moment that López Obrador said that his plan was for Banxico not to raise interest rates so much, the bank’s reaction should have been automatic to such a statement. But the answer was the usual one these days: silence.
A few years ago, then-president Felipe Calderón suggested to the governor of the Bank of Mexico, Guillermo Ortiz, that he not raise interest rates in the midst of the 2009 subprime crisis. The autonomous governor responded and the bank raised the interest rate. His punishment was not being re-elected to Banxico, but his reward was a unanimous recognition of his autonomy.
How dangerous that López Obrador believes that his basket of 24 frozen prices helps contain inflation. The Secretary of the Treasury said that this helps to stabilize the expectations of the prices, yes, of those 24 prices. Nothing more.
His package focuses on products that are basically measured in the non-core inflation subindex, when today the inflationary problem is already at the heart of inflation. It is an explanation that is left over, because they do not listen.
A lot of attention on this new idea that is now around the presidential head. López Obrador believes that his Pacic is going to fight inflation so that the Bank of Mexico raises the interest rate less.
The size of the measures taken by this regime is absurd and the autonomous central bank of Mexico must be very firm in making the corresponding monetary policy decisions. I wish they would also dare to be an institution that dares to explain its role.
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.