A Conversation with Carlos Slim Domit | Global Investors' Symposium Mexico City 2025

Mexico's Investment Case via "Man from Mars" Analogy:

• A hypothetical long-term investor with a "tricorder" analyzing global demographics and resources would select Mexico over competitors like Japan or South Korea due to specific data points.
• Demographics: Mexico has a young population with approximately 50% under age 30, contrasting sharply with Japan's median age approaching 50 and a population shrinking by two deaths for every birth.
• Human Capital: Mexico possesses a significant STEM-educated workforce compared to aging markets in East Asia and the Middle East.
• Quality of Life: The country offers favorable weather conditions compared to the extreme heat of the Middle East and East Asia, alongside a preferred geographic location near the ocean.
• Macro Stability: Mexico exhibits currency stability, with the currency remaining largely unchanged over the last 15 years.
• Geopolitical Advantage: The nation benefits from proximity to the world's largest market (the U.S.) and offers greater economic complementarity than ever before.
• Infrastructure & Manufacturing: Trends indicate a shift toward developing domestic infrastructure and manufacturing capacity to substitute imports previously sourced from Asia.

Telecommunications and the Era of Digital Connectivity:

• Telecommunications is defined as the sustaining infrastructure for a new global era of connectivity that enables access to entertainment, commerce, education, and health services.
• Digital Inclusion: Connectivity allows for the equalization of opportunities, enabling children in impoverished communities to access the same educational content and health data as those in wealthy areas.
• Economic Transformation: Connected companies can advance into digitalization, artificial intelligence (AI), data management, and cloud computing, while consumers gain access to digital payments and credit.
• Mobility Evolution: The sector envisions a future where billions of connected devices evolve to control autonomous vehicles, shifting the focus from "human as the weak link" to AI-driven transportation.
• Consumer Adaptation (2025): Consumers are increasingly empowered by technology to access products and services instantly, prioritizing time-saving tools and efficiency over traditional processes.
• Market Power: The consumer has become the dominant force in the market, requiring organizations to restructure internal hierarchies to respond to customer demands for better prices and promotions.

Capital Alignment and Growth Trajectories:

• Investment Targets: The current Mexican government's "Plan Mexico" aims to increase the investment-to-GDP ratio from a baseline of 25% to a target of 28%.
• Capital Composition: Historically, 80% of investment in emerging markets is private and local, with only 10% foreign and 10% public; achieving the growth goal requires private investment to drive infrastructure and energy projects.
• Global Comparison: Mexico's investment rate (trending 20-25%) lags behind China and India (approx. 40%) but significantly outperforms the U.S. (below 20%), indicating room for convergence.
• North American Bloc: A stronger North American economic union is viewed as essential for stabilizing supply chains, controlling inflation, and competing globally, combining U.S. AI/tech leadership with Mexican manufacturing capacity and a young, high-growth market of 500+ million people.
• Trade Outlook: While short-term turbulence is expected regarding trade agreement renegotiations, the long-term trend for North American economic integration remains positive.

Corporate Philosophy and Philanthropic Strategy:

• Ten Business Principles: The company operates on principles including minimizing distance between the CEO and vendors/customers for agility, reinvesting earnings to maintain financial health, and maintaining discipline during good times to survive bad ones.
• Digital-First Philanthropy: Unlike traditional foundations that operate separately, this model integrates social initiatives with core business infrastructure and technology.
• Education Initiative: The "Khan Academy" partnership and "Train for Jobs" platform offer free digital education (from basic to PhD levels) and certification for 500 job skills (e.g., data science, plumbing) across Spanish-speaking countries, serving over 50 million users.
• Resource Leverage: Social programs leverage the company's telecommunications network to provide free data for education and utilize company facilities and volunteers to deliver relief during natural disasters, minimizing administrative overhead.
• Scale of Impact: The strategy focuses on solving "big problems" through massive scale access rather than localized charity, utilizing the company's infrastructure to reduce costs and increase reach.

Optimism and Future Outlook:

• Demographic Sentiment: Mexico is reported to have the most optimistic young people and young women in the world, a sentiment expected to translate into future economic growth.
• Regional Potential: The North American region is identified as having the strongest potential for global economic leadership due to the combination of U.S. technological innovation and Mexican manufacturing and demographic vitality.
• Long-Term Commitment: Leadership projects a consistent trend of growth and development driven by private investment and infrastructure, acknowledging short-term challenges but maintaining high confidence in the 30-to-40-year horizon.