Go Back in Time at the Archeology Museum of the West
May 17th, 2012
The “Museo de Arqueología del Occidente, Lic. José Parres Arias” located on 16 de Septiembre Av. #889 in downtown Guadalajara, offers exhibitions from pre-Hispanic archeological sites, particularly from the Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima and Nayarit.
The first exhibition area is the Jalisco exhibition, which includes pre-Hispanic clay pieces for domestic use and ceremonial gatherings, as well as sculptures that represented important characters such as gods, as well as common people in their daily routines, executed using different kinds of clay and colors.
You will also see, along with coins used by the native “Los Toltecas” people, pieces of volcanic stone women used to grind corn and other artifacts used to process food. Corn was a very important and precious food in the mid-Americas, and was worshipped in ceremonies and represented by …
All Aboard the Jose Cuervo Express
May 3rd, 2012By Duncan Tucker
Ever wondered where your hangovers come from? Well now you can find out first-hand on Jose Cuervo’s express train to the town of Tequila.
Billed as the only train that actually takes passengers to Tequila, one of Mexico’s fabled “pueblos magicos,” (magic towns) the Cuervo Express opened in February. It is not be confused with rival service, the Tequila Express, which for 14 years has been transporting tourists to the Herradura distillery in nearby Amatitan.
The leisurely 60-kilometer journey from Guadalajara to Tequila takes exactly two hours. Holding up to 395 passengers, the finely furnished seven-carriage train rumbles along at a gentle pace through the rugged Jalisco countryside, past volcanoes and row upon row of spiky blue agave plants. As much agave-based booze as you can handle (margaritas, shots, long drinks) is readily available throughout the return journey, along with delicious nibbles, including empanadas, tacos and tortas ahogadas.
Get Rocky and Wild in the Barranca de Oblatos-Huentitán
March 29th, 2012By Erica Sosa
Just north of Guadalajara sits a geographic wonder that some say rivals America’s Grand Canyon: the “Barranca de Huentitán” known also as “Barranca de Oblatos-Huentitanm” a canyon up to 1,700 feet deep carved by the Río Grande de Santiago.
Home to a wide variety of vegetation, it offers magnificent views as well as a great place to exercise, although you need to watch out for some steep and rocky paths. It draws about 5,000 visitors a week who come to hike into and out of the canyon, as well as for picnics along the riverbank.
Will Mexico’s Presidential Elections Impact the Nearshore Wave?
March 27th, 2012
By James Bargent
When Mexican President Felipe Calderon took office in 2006, he became leader of a nation divided by a close-run election that was tainted by allegations of widespread fraud. Six years later, and the legacy he will leave come the end of his term in December will be similarly divisive for Mexicans and foreign business interests alike.
Mexico Increasingly Competitive
March 8th, 2012Source: Smart Planet
U.S. companies looking to outsource IT services and business processes are increasingly eyeing Latin America, and Mexico in particular.
It’s “near shore” versus offshore in action.
Closer to home than India or China, often with a deeper cultural affinity (especially among Southwestern states), Mexico has become an increasingly competitive option in the past five years.
“Mexico has made important advances,” said Javier Allard, president of the Mexican IT industry trade group AMITI. “We don’t want to compete with India, China or the Philippines. There are many niches.”
Neoris, a Mexico-based company that provides IT and business process outsourcing (BPO) services in Mexico, Argentina and elsewhere around the globe, is one of the companies seeing gains, as demand for near shore outsourcing from U.S. companies grows.
Neoris handles the e-commerce portal for a major home improvement retail chain; manages “enterprise resource planning,” or ERP, for an auto parts manufacturer and oversees …
Mexico’s Economy Targeted to Grow at 4.5% Rate this Year
March 7th, 2012Source: CRI English
Mexico’s economy may grow at least 4.5 percent in 2012 and may surpass 5 percent thanks to the spending boom caused by the country’s presidential election campaign, an analyst said.
“I believe that even if we are using a conservative forecast we are going to see the economy grow by at least 4.5 percent, and it is very likely it could be even higher and grow more than 5 percent,” Alfredo Coutino, chief Latin America economist for Moody’s Economy.com, told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on Monday.
“The Mexican economy is going to be better this year, both because the U.S. is recovering in a much better way than anticipated, and also because the economy is benefiting from the political spending,” Coutino said.
Moody’s forecast is significantly better than a growth of 3 to 4 percent projected by other financial experts, a view which has been supported by …
Mexico Shows Symptoms of Catching Start-Up Fever
February 23rd, 2012
Changes to regulations and a new “accelerator” suggest a better climate for entrepreneurs
By Duncan Tucker and Robert L. Scheier
Nearshore nations don’t always make things easy for new businesses – even for IT outsourcing companies that bring the promise of jobs and revenue. But recent developments in Mexico, where investors tend to be “more conservative” and wary of would-be innovators, indicate that government and venture capitalists are becoming more supportive of start-ups.
Why is HP Ramping Up in Latin America?
February 14th, 2012Julio Acevedo, head of HP Guadalajara explains the types of services coming from the Nearshore.
Slim’s Dominance of Mexico’s Telephone Market Challenged
February 13th, 2012Source: Reuters
A court has ordered Mexico’s competition watchdog to investigate claims of collusion between businesses controlled by telecommunications tycoon Carlos Slim and Spain’s Telefonica, according to a court document seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The federal court asked the Federal Competition Commission (Cofeco) to determine whether there was anything improper in Isidro Faine, a vice-chairman on the Telefonica (TEF.MC) board, also sitting on the board of Slim’s financial group Inbursa (GFINBURO.MX).
“(It) could possibly mean that the said companies find it easier to make deals … that reduce competition,” the court said in the January 30 document, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.
The ruling is the latest twist in a legal complaint brought against Slim and Telefonica last year by companies owned by Mexico’s two top broadcasting moguls, Emilio Azcarraga of Televisa and Ricardo Salinas of TV Azteca, who are keen to challenge Slim’s dominance of the telephone …
Billionaire Slim Criticizes OECD Report on Mexico’s Phone Industry
February 2nd, 2012Source: Business Week
Billionaire Carlos Slim was out of context and off the mark in his criticism of a study finding a lack of competition in Mexico’s phone industry, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said.
Slim told reporters yesterday that the group’s report, released earlier this week, seemed to use data “pulled out of thin air.” The 72-year-old, who controls Mexico’s largest wireless and landline-phone companies, denied the study’s claims that Mexican carriers overcharged consumers $13.4 billion a year for phone and Internet services from 2005 to 2009.
Mexico’s government, which commissioned the study, is using it to validate efforts to create more competition in telecommunications. The findings support the government’s plan to auction off fiber-optic lines owned by the state power company and contracts to push high-speed Internet into communities where it’s not available, Communications and Transportation Minister Dionisio Perez-Jacome said this week.
“The OECD stands by its …
