Mexico freezes ties with US, Canadian embassies for slamming judicial reform

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Tuesday that he has put relations with the U.S., Canadian embassies in Mexico City "on pause" after the ambassadors of the two countries expressed their apprehension over his administration's proposed judicial reforms.

"They have to learn to respect Mexico's sovereignty, it's no small matter," Lopez Obrador told reporters at the National Palace in Mexico City at his usual daily press conference.

Ties with the embassy will stay paused until the diplomatic outpost clears up what was said regarding the reform initiative, said the Mexican president, adding that the bilateral relationship with the U.S. government continues as always.

For the same reason, Lopez Obrador also announced to freeze relations with the Canadian embassy in Mexico City.

Mexico's President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum, who will take office in October, and Foreign Minister Alicia Barcena have both expressed their support for Lopez Obrador's decision.

Later on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar responded to Lopez Obrador's move in a diplomatic note, reiterating that the United States has the "utmost respect for Mexico's sovereignty."

Salazar also expressed the hope to maintain close cooperation with Mexico.

The ruling Morena party and its coalition won a majority in Mexico's bicameral Congress in general elections this June, pledging efforts to launch judicial reforms which include 20 measures.

On Aug. 22, Salazar said the reform's proposal to have judges elected by popular vote instead of being political appointments, as they are now, represented a risk to democracy and would weaken economic integration.

Mexico freezes ties with US, Canadian embassies for slamming judicial reform

Mexico freezes ties with US, Canadian embassies for slamming judicial reform

The onshore Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened to below 7.10 against the U.S. dollar in August.

In August, the weighted average rate on new corporate loans registered around 3.6 percent, a decline of over 0.2 percentage points from an already relatively low benchmark in 2023.

This indicates that China has continued to lower the overall financing costs and is encouraging financial institutions to pass on profits to the real economy.

The RMB exchange rate has seen an appreciation. The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, has retreated from its peak since August, decreasing from above 104 to below 101, marking a new low in over a year with a decline of about 3 percent.

The onshore RMB exchange rate against the U.S. dollar has strengthened from a high point of 7.27 yuan in mid-July to below 7.10 yuan, a cumulative appreciation of 2 percent.

Cross-border funds continued to flow into the Chinese domestic market, maintaining a net increase trend. In August, overseas investors increased their net holdings of domestic bonds by approximately 17 billion U.S. dollars, marking the 12th consecutive month of net inflows.

Onshore Chinese yuan strengthens against USD in Aug