* Not all the news about foreign investment is gloomy. Eastman Kodak announced last month that it will move all production of 35mm film to its plant in Guadalajara, Jalisco. The decision should mean that Kodak de México will increase its exports by 40%, to over US$300m a year. The decision will also mean that the plant will hire 250 more workers. The plant currently employs 3,000. Kodak already produces disposable cameras, X-ray film and special film for the graphic arts at the plant.
* Unisource from Guatemala is investing US$5m on building a fertiliser processing plant in Jalisco. The plant is being supported by the state-owned Banco Nacional de Comercio Exterior, since its production will mostly be exported.
* The US has formally appealed against a ruling from the World Trade Organization (WTO) on its steel tariffs. This declared that US tariffs on steel imported from the European Union. Brazil, Japan, South Korea, China, Switzerland, New Zealand and Norway were illegal. The WTO ruled that the US tariffs of between 8% and 30%, imposed in March 2002, were illegal because they were designed to curb imports and protect the US steel industry. Mexico, which was not subjected to the higher US tariffs, is, indirectly, a beneficiary of them.
* Threequarters of all video games sold in Mexico are pirated copies, according to video games publishers. They claim that Mexico is the third-biggest market for pirate video games and consoles after China and Russia. The industry reckons that Mexicans spend US$410m a year on pirated games and consoles. Consultants claim that the prevalence of illegal games and consoles means that international companies are unwilling to invest in the country. The industry is currently worth around US$50bn a year, and is expected to increase to US$85bn by 2006. The industry is located mostly in the US (42%) followed by Asia (31%) and the European Union (25%). Only 2% of the industry is based outside these areas.
* The Swiss trade verification company, SGS, started to implement its ValuNet system for the Mexican customs service. Customs officers say that the system will make it easier to detect false trade documents. The system is costing US$3m and has immediately identified 300 suspect importers.
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