Mexican stocks fell to their worst day-to-day decline in almost three years due to a significant selloff in the airport sector sparked by unexpected revisions to airports’ concessions agreements.
The benchmark S&P/BMV IPC index dropped more than 2.5%, its largest daily slide since January 2021 and lowest close in nine months. Earlier in the session, the index shed 4.4% to log its biggest intraday loss since March 2020 in response to the announcement.
Major airport operators were trading their worst session to date, with shares in Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (OMA) losing 25.9%, while Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico (GAP) slipped as much as 22.4%. Grupo Aeroportuario del Surest (Asur) was also down more than 16.7%.
Mexico Government Imposes Unexpected Changes to Airport Fees
The glum in the Mexican stock market came as Mexico President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s administration introduced changes to the fees local airports can charge.
A person with knowledge of the matter said the unexpected alterations would impact whole companies’ tariff system, which includes passenger fees known as the TUA and airport services related to runway utilization and airline and supplier leases.
The airport groups are expected to discuss the possible operational impact with the Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications, and Transportation (SICT), as the documents they received from the government required clarification, according to the person.
OMA, GAP, and Asur have declined to provide more information on the nature of the changes, stating that they are examining the current situation.
The Ministry of Transport (MOT) has also turned down a request for comment.
Analyst at a Mexican brokerage, Marco Antonio Montanez, saw the revisions as negative for the sector, weighing on profitability and free cash flow generation at the airport operators.
The relationship between Mexico’s government and airport groups has long been rocky.
In 2018, Obrador triggered a major selloff in domestic assets when he decided to call off plans to set up a new airport, which was already partially built by the time it was canceled, as the project cost too much and was corrupted.
