Mexico sheds 344,500 formal jobs in May to push coronavirus losses above 1 million

Mexico’s economy shed 344,526 formal jobs in May because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, pushing the number of lost jobs in the last three months above 1 million even as the pace of layoffs slowed down.

Widespread confinement measures in place since late March have ravaged Mexico’s economy, second largest in Latin America. Economists predicted it would suffer its biggest recession in decades.

In April, the economy shed 555,247 jobs and 130,593 in March, among employees registered with the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS).

President Andres Manuel Lopez . . .