International Business : Global Markets and Economic Update

MEXICAN STOCKS

* Mexican stocks ended lower in another session of anemic dealings. The Bolsa index was off 1.02%. Volume was very low.

* Rates shot higher in a central bank attempt to build up the barricades around the peso, dealers said. Yields on all maturities of treasury bills (cetes) auctioned this week rose. Yields on the benchmark 28-day cete rose 60 basis points, to 17.10%.

* Among the worries about the outcome of the coming presidential election, investors are concerned about “what will happen to the currency policy,” said Pablo Eizayaga, vice president of fixed-income trading at J.P. Morgan.

Source: Times wire services

SPOTLIGHT: EL SALVADOR

Despite a destructive civil war, El Salvador’s economy grew between 1985 and 1991. Last year saw a boom in construction and commerce, but unemployment and inflation are major problems. In addition to U.S. aid, the economy gets a boost from an estimated $700 million a year sent home by Salvadorans living in the United States.

Sources: Bank of America; World Information Services