Carlos Slim’s America Movil Faces Breakup Pressure From Bill

Mexican lawmakers announced legislation yesterday that threatens to rein in the country’s telecommunications monopolies, raising the possibility of a Ma Bell-style breakup for Carlos Slim’s dominant America Movil SAB.

The bill, which will be presented in Mexico’s congress, would create an agency with the power to regulate competition in the phone and broadcasting industries, Communications and Transportation Minister Gerardo Ruiz Esparza said yesterday. The proposal took a toll on shares of America Movil, which has 70 percent of mobile-phone subscribers and 80 percent of landlines. The stock plunged to its lowest price in almost four years.