Mexico’s Climate and Economic Regions

Ch. 6, Section 1, part 2

 Land of Many Climates
• Latitude and altitude affect climate
• Three altitudes in Mexico
– “tierra caliente” - hot land, Coastal lowlands
(sea level)
– “tierra templada” - temperate land” moving higher,
moderate climate
– “tierra fria” - cold land, highest elevations
Altitude Zones
 Rainfall
• Baja and northern Mexico don’t get
much rain year-round, but other places
do - mostly in the summer and early fall.
• Hurricanes can hit Mexico June to Oct.
 Mexico’s Economic Regions
• Mexico’s physical geography and
climate have created 3 economic
regions:
– The North
– Central Mexico
– The South
 Northern Mexico
• Monterrey - main producer of steel and cement
• Where most vaqueros (cowboys) live

Many countries, including the U.S., have built

maquiladoras in Northern Mexico.
- These are factories that assemble parts made
in other countries.
* Tijuana and Ciudad Juárez
 Central Mexico
• More than 1/2 of Mexico’s people live
here.
• Why is the climate pleasant year round?

• Soil here was created by volcanic

eruptions and is very fertile.
 Central Mexico
• Mexico City and Guadalajara are to
large industrial cities found here
• 22 million people in Mexico city and
suburbs!
• It is the largest city in the Americas
since before the Spanish arrived in the
1500’s.
 Southern Mexico
• Poorest economic region in
the country
• The mountains in the center
of this region have poor soil,
so subsistence farming is
common there.
• Lowlands have good soil, so
larger farms are found there.
 Southern Mexico
• Plantations are common in the lowlands
• These are large farms that raise a
single crop ex. Sugarcane, bananas
• Beautiful beaches are found here.
Resort cities include: Acapulco, Puerto
Vallarta, and Cancùn
 Mexico’s Economy Today
• Mexico’s economy ranks in the top 15 in
the world!
– Crop exports include: coffee, cotton,
vegetables, fruit, livestock, tobacco
 Mexico’s Economy Today
• Recently, Mexico has industrialized
• This means:

• Factories in Mexico now produce things

like: cars, consumer goods, and steel
• Service industries are important here
• Oil can be found in the Gulf of Mexico
and southern coast.
 NAFTA
• Some Americans have been afraid that
belonging to NAFTA means American
jobs will “go south”.
• They fear the lower rate for labor in
Mexico will encourage manufacturers to
move their businesses to Mexico.