Between 80 and 100 real estate firms closed in the border region, while in Monterrey, the capital of Nuevo Leon, the surging crime and violence “killed” medical tourism, which had been drawing from 60 to 70 foreign patients a month to the industrial city for surgical procedures of all kinds, Desfassiaux said.

Visits “have been reduced, on average, to one every three months,” Desfassiaux said, adding that tourism in the border region was down 10 percent.

Nightlife in the border region has been reduced drastically, the security expert said.

“Patrons prefer to stay home, leading to the closings of 36 percent of restaurants and of 53 percent of nightclubs and bars,” Desfassiaux said.

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