Mexico (continued)
Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, San Diego, and Consulates in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo, McAllen (Texas), Miami, Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Presidio (Texas), Sacramento, St. Louis, St. Paul (Minneapolis), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Seattle; US—Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE, Jr.; Embassy at Paseo de la Reforma 305, Mexico 5, D.F. (mailing address is P. O. Box 3087, Laredo, TX 78044); telephone [52](5) 211-0042; there are US Consulates General in Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Tijuana, and Consulates in Hermosillo, Matamoros, Mazatlan, Merida, and Nuevo Laredo
Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake is its beak) is centered in the white band
Economy
Overview: Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture. In the 1980s Mexico experienced severe economic difficulties: the nation accumulated large external debts as world petroleum prices fell; rapid population growth outstripped the domestic food supply; and inflation, unemployment, and pressures to emigrate became more acute. Growth in national output dropped from 8% in 1980 to 1.1% in 1988 and 2.5% in 1989. The US is Mexico's major trading partner, accounting for two-thirds of its exports and imports. After petroleum, border assembly plants and tourism are the largest earners of foreign exchange. The government, in consultation with international economic agencies, is implementing programs to stabilize the economy and foster growth.
GDP: $187.0 billion, per capita $2,165; real growth rate 2.5% (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 20% (1989)
Unemployment rate: 20% (1989 est.)
Budget: revenues $36.1 billion; expenditures $56.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.7 billion (1988)
Exports: $23.1 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities—crude oil, oil products, coffee, shrimp, engines, cotton; partners—US 66%, EC 16%, Japan 11%
Imports: $23.3 billion (c.i.f., 1989); commodities—grain, metal manufactures, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment; partners—US 62%, EC 18%, Japan 10%
External debt: $95.1 billion (1989)
Industrial production: growth rate 1.3% (1988)
Electricity: 26,900,000 kW capacity; 103,670 million kWh produced, 1,200 kWh per capita (1989)
Industries: food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, transportation equipment, tourism
Agriculture: accounts for 9% of GDP and over 25% of work force; large number of small farms at subsistence level; major food crops—corn, wheat, rice, beans; cash crops—cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; fish catch of 1 .4 million metric tons among top 20 nations (1987)
Illicit drugs: illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of government eradication efforts; major link in chain of countries used to smuggle cocaine from South American dealers to US markets
Aid: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $3.0 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $6.8 billion; Communist countries (1970-88), $110 million
Currency: Mexican peso (plural—pesos); 1 Mexican peso (Mex$) = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1—2,660.3 (January 1990), 2,461.3 (1989), 2,273.1 (1988), 1,378.2 (1987), 61 1.8 (1986), 256.9 (1985)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Railroads: 20,680 km total; 19,950 km
1.435-meter standard gauge; 730 km
0.914-meter narrow gauge
Highways: 210,000 km total; 65,000 km paved, 30,000 km semipaved or cobblestone, 60,000 km rural roads (improved earth) or roads under construction, 55,000 km unimproved earth roads
Inland waterways: 2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals
Pipelines: crude oil, 4,381 km; refined products, 8,345 km; natural gas, 13,254 km
Ports: Acapulco, Coatzacoalcos, Ensenada, Guaymas, Manzanillo, Mazatlan, Progreso, Puerto Vallarta, Salina Cruz, Tampico, Veracruz
Merchant marine: 68 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,041,229 GRT/1,552,478 DWT; includes 5 short-sea passenger, 10 cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 31 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 3 chemical tanker, 7 liquefied gas, 4 bulk, 4 combination bulk
Civil air: 174 major transport aircraft
Airports: 1,785 total, 1,484 usable; 190 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 31 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 259 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Telecommunications: highly developed system with extensive radio relay links; connection into Central American Microwave System; 6.41 million telephones; stations—679 AM, no FM, 238 TV, 22 shortwave; 120 domestic satellite terminals; satellite earth stations—4 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT and 1 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT
Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine
Corps
Military manpower: males 15-49, 21,575,525; 15,803,322 fit for military service; 1,118,046 reach military age (18) annually
Defense expenditures: 0.5% of GDP
