TORONTO — The head of Scotiabank says he’s not overly concerned with the election result in Mexico, a key area of focus for growth at the bank.

Speaking at a Canadian Club event in Toronto, Scott Thomson says the election of Claudia Sheinbaum as president last weekend was no surprise, but the apparent congressional supermajority was, leading to market jitters.

The strength of the election victory has raised fears that her party will press forward with constitutional changes that would weaken democratic institutions and make an already hostile business environment in some sectors even worse.

Thomson says he’s reassured by how institutions prevailed after Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected with a supermajority in 2018, and by the long-term view Scotiabank has with its operations in the country.

He says in the short-term, Scotiabank will be thoughtful on capital allocation in the country, which ranks only behind the U.S. and Canada in its growth strategy.

Thomson’s remarks were briefly interrupted by two protesters within the Fairmont Royal York ballroom, who raised objections to the bank’s investments in Israeli defence contractor Elbit Systems Ltd., while more protesters also blockaded the front door of the hotel.

-With files from The Associated Press.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:BNS)

The Canadian Press