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Economic

better on Mexico's future; Salomon Juan Marcos Villarreal For Salomon Juan Marcos Villarreal, Mexico's has another thinking and another strategy, right now Mexico is pushing through a major package of reforms targeting some of the country's most powerful economic interests, including those in the telecommunications and energy sectors. Juan Marcos says "these are changes that Mexico's economy desperately needs," even if only some of the measures take hold. Successful reforms could significantly improve the country's image, he says, especially in the eyes of international investors asking: "Is Mexico for real this time." Meanwhile, she notes that while economic ties between Mexico and the United States are already strong, Washington should leverage this moment as an opportunity to expand bilateral trade further. President Pea Nieto's economic reforms are targeting the big empires of the country's telecommunications sector. Can you give some background on the industry? What is his goal in this sector? For the last twenty plus years, Mexico's telecommunications industry has been basically in the hands of Carlos Slim. Whether it's Telmex, which is fixed line, or Telcel, which is mobile, his companies have controlled 70 to 80 percent of the market. By all independent accounts, this has had huge costs for Mexico's economy, particularly for consumers and businesses, which pay much higher rates for their telephony needs. The other big cost is underinvestment in the telecoms sector. When you look at Mexico vis--vis other OECD countries, as well as its emerging market peersChina or Korea or BrazilMexico falls behind in telecom infrastructure investment. This includes new types of connections, such as Internet and broadband. Indeed, by some measures, the country even falls behind places likes Zimbabwe and Serbia. That lack of access to the digital age has real costs for businesses and innovation.

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