The government comes (again) to the rescue of Pemex

The Treasury Department announced that it will issue "pre-capitalized notes" to provide liquidity to Pemex, that is, it will take on debt from the federal government to address the company's fragile financial situation.

How much? The report doesn't say, but yesterday Bloomberg estimated it would be a maximum of $10 billion and a minimum of $7 billion.

The SHCP did not clearly specify what it will use these funds for, which it could begin receiving in 2027 and continue until 2030, only stating that they would be used to "strengthen the company's liquidity position and meet its short-term obligations."

These resources, according to the SHCP statement, "will allow the company to have timely resources to meet its operational and financial needs within its balance sheet objectives."

He clarifies that the operation "does not constitute a guarantee for Petróleos Mexicanos."

And, as they say on the ranch, this is where the pig twisted its tail.

The company's financial situation is so critical that it obviously could not offer any guarantees to those who purchase these pre-capitalized notes, so the federal government will be the guarantor.

The document, an ode to euphemism, does not clarify that it is a debt, but in Spanish that is what will be done.

Beyond the debate about whether it's feasible to "throw more good money after bad" or "into the bottomless pit," we should ask ourselves what those resources will be used for.

For refining, which is a dump, according to official figures (we refine less each month), for exploration and production, which would be the most profitable part if things are done right, or for paying the billions owed to suppliers?

This last issue has already generated complaints from US suppliers who have not been paid since the start of López Obrador's administration.

Sheinbaum could prioritize paying suppliers in the northern country, but that would leave thousands of domestic suppliers, of all sizes, who survive on unfulfilled promises uncovered.

You only have to take a trip to Ciudad del Carmen and Villahermosa to witness firsthand how thousands of small businesses have gone bankrupt due to Pemex's nonpayment.

Let's see.

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The capital's government (with the participation of the federal government by default) is doing everything possible to ensure that Mexico loses or is deprived of the opening match of the upcoming World Cup.

Who in their right mind would think of promoting marches and demonstrations against "gentrification," announcing that they're looking to regulate or strangle app-based accommodations, and maintaining the ban on app-based taxis picking up passengers at Benito Juárez Airport?

Where is that slogan "Mexico welcomes you with open arms" when two of the neighborhoods with the best services, where a significant foreign population lives, wake up with graffiti saying "kill a gringo" and the local authorities consider it an exercise of free expression?

The club's image abroad has been so battered that the World Cup would be an excellent opportunity to revive it, but now there's a risk of missing the opening match and, in the worst-case scenario, the other 12 scheduled games.

You see, in the Club World Cup final, FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump became friends.

@adriantrejo