Mexico's economy grows by 1% in 2nd quarter

FILE - Construction workers ride on a beam hanging from a crane at the construction site of a residential high rise building in Mexico City, June 17, 2022. Mexico’s economy grew by 1% in the second quarter, Mexico’s national statistics agency said Friday, July 29. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s economy grew by 1% in the second quarter, Mexico’s national statistics agency said Friday.

Economic growth for the first half of 2022 now amounts to 1.9%,after an expansion of 0.9% in the first three months of the year.

The economy recovered by 5% in 2021 following a steep drop during the coronavirus pandemic.

But growth is expected to slow amid high interest rates and an economic downturn in the United States, by far Mexico’s largest trading partner.

Mexico’s central bank has raised domestic interest rates to 7.75%, buoying the peso but making credit expensive. The Mexican peso was trading Friday at around 20.30 to $1, stronger than in recent weeks.