Mexico: Hit hard by US slump

On his recent state visit to the US, Mexican president Vicente Fox bathed in the warm glow of Mexico’s new friendship with its northern neighbour. George W Bush tried out his Spanish and everyone else agreed that ever-closer economic ties between the two nations were the new future for Mexican economic growth.

But following the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, Mexico is being hit hard by the US slump and Mexican companies are beginning to wonder if such a friendship with the US is worth having.