Mexican factory output shrank less severely in June
MEXICO CITY, July 6 (Reuters) - A severe recession in Mexico's manufacturing sector showed signs of easing in June, with a key survey of industrial activity posting its best reading since October.
The Mexican Institute of Finance Executives, or IMEF, said its index of the nation's factories rose to 48.2 last month from 46.8 in May, but it marked the 12th straight month of shrinkage. Any reading below 50 points to contraction.
Still, in a result that mirrored some recent improvement in the outlook for the U.S. economy, the current level was the highest since a banking crisis sent the global financial system into a tailspin, back in the fall of 2008.
In other positive signals, IMEF's measures of new orders and production both jumped sharply, although they remained in recession territory.
Mexico is mired in its worst recession since at least the Tequila crisis of the mid-1990s, and the results of Sunday's vote raised fears among investors that reforms seen as key to the economy's performance might not make it through Congress.
Mexican voters on Sunday dealt a defeat to the ruling party in mid-term congressional elections. For details, see [ID:nN05216862]
The country's gross domestic product is expected to shrink over 6 percent this year, which would make it the worst performer among large Latin American nations.
The group's services index also improved, rising to 47.4 from 45.9. Still, the still-negative reading indicated Mexico's recession had spread well beyond its staple production sector. (Reporting by Pedro Nicolaci da Costa; Editing by Neil Stempleman)
