ANALYSIS: Sale of Mexico Monopoly's Oil Plants Put on Hold.(Originated from The Miami Herald)

MIAMI--May 23--Mexico's efforts to sell a piece of its oil industry and show its continued commitment to free-market reforms are delayed and perhaps even endangered by challenges from nationalist politicians and militant labor unions.

The dispute has reached such intensity that the government felt forced to issue a statement Wednesday afternoon saying the sale of 61 petrochemical plants "has not been suspended," as had been reported by a Mexican newspaper earlier in the day.

But the statement issued by the Energy Ministry raised new questions, because it failed to set a new date for the start of the bidding process. The start of the sale procedures has been postponed twice in recent weeks. …