MEXICO CITY, (Reuters) – The number of poor people in Mexico increased to 46.2 percent of the population, or 52 million people in 2010, up from 44.5 percent in 2008 following the global economic crisis, a government body said yesterday.
Extreme poverty was down slightly at 10.4 percent or 11.7 million people in 2010 from 10.6 percent in 2008, according to a report by an official body responsible for measuring poverty in Mexico, known locally as Coneval.
Coneval classed people with an income lower than 2,114 pesos ($180) a month in urban areas, or 1,329 pesos a month in rural areas as poor. The extreme poor were those with 978 pesos a month or 684 pesos a month in rural areas.
The financial crisis began in the United States, Mexico’s main trade partner, and prompted a deep recession in 2009 that saw unemployment rise to its highest level in 12 years.
President Felipe Calderon’s conservative administration had pledged to cut poverty and critics say he has not done enough to reduce inequality in Latin America’s second biggest economy.
Coneval said the crisis prompted a drop in household incomes and access to food, which affected urban more than rural areas.
