(Bloomberg) — Mexico Finance Minister Rogelio Ramirez de la O tendered his resignation on Friday after more than three years as the top official in charge of the nation’s budget, according to two people familiar with the situation.
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Deputy Finance Minister Edgar Amador will replace Ramirez de la O in the position, according to the people. Amador, a former Mexico City official during the administration of Mayor Miguel Mancera last decade, has served as deputy finance minister since last year, often attending public events instead of Ramirez de la O.
Initially chosen by former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to serve in the role in 2021, he was the architect of the Morena Party’s austerity plans as well as the expanded government spending that took place in the final years of the popular leader’s mandate. He also drove efforts to rescue of Mexico’s indebted oil company and oversaw the construction of major federal infrastructure projects from a tourist train to a refinery.
Widely expected to leave the government at the end of Lopez Obrador’s term, he decided to stay on through the start of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s term that began in October, and helped investors navigate the initial volatility of President Donald Trump’s tariff threats. But he will leave the post with Mexico facing analyst concerns about whether the government will be able to rebalance its budget amid slowing growth.
Ramirez de la O didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The news was first reported by Heraldo de Mexico columnist Dario Celis and El CEO finance news website.
Mexico’s peso was little moved by the news, which had been repeatedly rumored in local news stories, as it traded around 0.1% stronger against the dollar.
Mexico is facing what is widely expected to be a fourth consecutive year of slower economic growth, while uncertainty over the future of the North American free trade deal known as the USMCA has weighed on investors. Sheinbaum has pledged to shrink the deficit and avoid tax increases, even as she promises to invest more in security, build a million homes and expand the direct aid programs that helped bolster the party’s support during her 2024 election campaign.
Sheinbaum, who according to El Financiero enjoys an 85% approval rating, has received praise for her handling of Trump’s threats to impose 25% tariffs on Mexican goods. Trump this week exempted Mexican and Canadian goods covered by the USMCA from the tariffs until April 2 after speaking with Sheinbaum by phone on Thursday.
Ramirez de la O also worked to assuage investors after both Sheinbaum and Morena — the party Lopez Obrador founded — won a landslide victory last year that gave them broad control over the majority of the country’s states and enough votes to change the Constitution. Markets expressed concern in particular over the decision to have the selection of Supreme Court and federal judges be determined by popular vote, a process that will take place for the first time in June.
The uncertain environment has potentially taken the wind out of Mexico’s sails after economists had predicted global changes after the pandemic would bring many businesses to the country as they sought to move closer to US consumers. Banco de Mexico, the country’s central bank, is predicting that gross domestic product will expand only 0.6% this year, down from a previous estimate of 1.2%. Fourth-quarter growth was weaker due to drought, manufacturing weakness and lower investment.
Ramirez de la O, a former director of economic consultancy Ecanal, worked in the private sector for much of his career before taking on one of the country’s most important cabinet positions. He earned a Ph.D from the University of Cambridge and was known for having predicted the country’s 1994 peso crisis.
During Lopez Obrador’s term, the peso strengthened against the dollar for years as investors saw relative stability in Mexico despite the president’s tenuous relationship with business groups.
Sheinbaum has largely continued her predecessor’s programs and pledged to prioritize state firms in the private sector, but slower growth could be a challenge for the wide-reaching programs she has designed, while tariff uncertainty has put Mexico’s strategy of supercharging the economy by boosting exports and attracting foreign investment further at risk.
–With assistance from Maya Averbuch and Alex Vasquez.
(Updates with Amador as replacement in second paragraph)
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