Economic Growth at End of 2025. The president noted that Mexico’s economy is showing an upturn at year-end, with inflation decreasing in the first half of December and improvements in economic activity indicators. “We have all our development and innovation projects ongoing. It has been a year full of challenges, but we are closing strongly. Economic activity rebounded in October, with the global activity index growing by 1%, its best performance since July 2024. Inflation in December stood at 3.72%, down from 3.99% in the second half of November,” she said.
Violent Video Game Tax Will Be Removed. President Claudia Sheinbaum acknowledged the difficulty of classifying and differentiating video games with violent content. She announced that the previously proposed tax on violent video games will not be applied. Instead, the government will implement educational campaigns highlighting the potential harmful behaviors and consequences associated with such games.
“We will no longer collect this tax. It is very difficult, distinguishing between a violent video game and a non-violent one is challenging. Who decides that? We decided not to apply the tax and instead focus on campaigns showing where these games could lead young people, as they can create addiction and promote violent behavior,” she said.
Tobacco Use Declines While E-Cigarettes and Vaping Increase. Minister of Health David Kershenobich reported that traditional cigarette smoking decreased from 17.6% to 15.1%, while e-cigarette use rose from 1.1% in 2016 to 2.6% in 2025. The government will strengthen educational campaigns to raise awareness of the health risks of vaping.
Alcohol Consumption Falls in 2025. The National Survey on Drug, Alcohol, and Tobacco Use (ENCODAT) reported a decrease in overall alcohol consumption over the past year, though historical data shows an upward trend, from 71% to 73.7%. Adolescent alcohol consumption dropped from 28% to 17.8%, with excessive monthly use decreasing from 8.3% to 2.6%. “Overall alcohol use increased slightly from 71% to 73.7%, and among women from 62.6% to 69.3%. However, excessive drinking declined,” the official noted.
Adult Drug Use Rises. Kershenobich reported adult drug consumption rose from 10.6% in 2016 to 14.6% in 2025, with marijuana, hallucinogens, and amphetamines being most common. Adolescent use fell from 6.2% to 4.1%. Opioid use increased from 0.1% to 1.4%, while fentanyl prevalence remains very low.
“Despite the rise in adult use, prevalence is still low. Cannabis consumption increased the most, from 9.3% in 2016 to 13.3% in 2025,” he detailed.