Mexico's economic foundation solid enough amid global crisis: ruling party leader

Mexico's economic foundation is solid enough to face the current global financial turbulence caused by plunging oil prices and currency depreciation, ruling party leader said Sunday.

Since the start of 2016, Mexico has been troubled by financial uncertainty, but the country has maintained macroeconomic consistency, implemented economic reforms and planned adjustments in the public sector, said Manlio Fabio Beltrones, president of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).

"Mexico has taken provisional measures to avoid the negative impact on the population's welfare and to sustain economic growth," said Beltrones during the weekly meeting with his team.

The country's annual economic growth is expected to stay between 2.6 and 2.8 percent this year, which will place the Mexican economy above average among Latin American countries, according to Beltrones.

The Mexican peso has depreciated 9.57 percent since the middle of last December but closed at a historic peak of 19.01 pesos per U.S. dollar on Jan. 21.

Meanwhile, Mexican oil price dropped to 18.90 U.S. dollars per barrel earlier this week, a record low since 2002. Then on Friday, it closed at 22.77 U.S. dollars per barrel amid an upswing.

Ricardo Anaya, president of the opposition National Action Party (PAN), on Sunday urged the government to counter the impact of the global crisis by cutting expenditures and boosting investment in public works. Endi