MEXICO CITY (Reuters – Mexico’s unexpectedly weakened by 0.2% during October despite its recovery from the COVID-19 Pandemic. This was according to official data on Friday.

According to figures from INEGI, October’s seasonally adjusted contraction was the third consecutive month of decline in economic activity.

According to Reuters, economists had predicted that the economy would expand by 0.8% by October after a disappointing quarter when gross domestic product declined by 0.4%.

In seasonally adjusted terms, October’s economy growth was 0.3% higher than the previous month. The INEGI data revealed that it contracted by 0.7% in unadjusted terms.

Mexican businesses have experienced disruptions due to bottlenecks within international supply chains. This has led to work stops in some industries, including the car manufacturing industry, which is a key component of Mexico’s export-driven manufacturing sector.

A breakdown of the figures from INEGI showed that October’s contraction was due to weakness in both tertiary (which include services) and primary activities (which encompass farming, fishing, and mining).

Primary activities saw a 1.2% decline in September, while secondary activities experienced a 0.5% decrease. However, secondary activities which includes manufacturing, grew by 0.6%.