Mexico tycoon Carlos Slim leaves hospital after Covid bout

MEXICO CITY: Mexican telecoms billionaire Carlos Slim, one of the world's richest men, has been discharged from hospital and is doing well after a bout with Covid-19, a source close to his family said Saturday.

The 81-year-old tycoon "has been at home since January 28 and is in very good health," the source with the Slim family's Grupo Carso told AFP.

On Monday Slim's son, Carlos Slim Domit, announced on Twitter that his father was being treated for Covid-19 and had only mild symptoms.

"He's very well. He is making very good progress with Covid-19 after more than a week of minor symptoms," Slim Domit wrote at the time.

Slim and his family, who control mobile telecom giant America Movil, are worth an estimated $58.5 billion, according to Forbes magazine, making him Latin America's richest man.

Through his foundation, he is helping to fund joint production in Mexico and Argentina of the coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford for distribution in Latin America.

Slim's infection came a day after Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced he had tested positive for Covid-19. On Friday Lopez Obrador said he still has the disease but "the critical phase is passing."

Mexico has officially registered around 1.8 million coronavirus cases and more than 155,000 deaths, one of the world's highest fatality tolls.

Both new infections and deaths have set daily records this month, leaving hospitals overwhelmed and patients struggling to find treatment.