The Bolsa Rises!

Feb. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Mexico's Bolsa rose for the first time in three days as investors bought shares that have declined the most in a global selloff and construction companies rallied on a plan to increase spending on roads, ports and dams.

``Long-term investors are accumulating shares of some of these companies that have fallen to good levels,'' said Gerardo Copca, equity analysts at Metanalisis in Mexico City.

The Bolsa index of 35 most-traded shares rose 159.03, or 0.6 percent, to 28,088.32.

Construction company Impulsadora del Desarrollo y el Empleo en America Latina SA, controlled by billionaire Carlos Slim, rose the most since Jan. 23, gaining 7.5 percent to 14.83 pesos. Slim had joined President Felipe Calderon for the announcement of the $3.7 billion infrastructure fund yesterday

Empresas ICA SAB, Mexico's largest construction company, rose 1 percent to 66.25 pesos. Cemex SAB, North America's largest cement maker, rose for the first time in three days, gaining 1 percent to 27.69 pesos, paring its loss for the past 12 months to 31 percent.

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Importance: Mexico must be doing something right, or at least its construction industry must, as it is showing economic increase where everywhere else is showing the steady road to a recession. Is this a fluke rise, or genuine economic increase? Only time will tell...

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Investigation of Possible Phone Monopoly

Mexico's antitrust agency on Wednesday began a probe into market dominance in the fixed-line telephone market, a thinly veiled challenge to the power of market leader Telmex, owned by tycoon Carlos Slim.

The Federal Competition Commission, without naming any company, said it will investigate if there was any "substantial power" and "real competition" in various fixed-line long distance and local telephone markets.

Telmex, a former state monopoly that Slim bought in a 1990 privatization, has around 90 percent of Mexico's 20 million fixed lines and was declared "dominant" several years ago by antitrust regulators.

Slim, reckoned by some to be the world's richest person, overturned that ruling in Mexican courts.

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Importance: This investigation reveals Mexican attempts to reform some of the corruption which seems to be inherent in its government and economy.

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