Mexico's government said late Friday the confirmed death toll of the influenza A/H1N1 rose to 16 in the country and another 397 people infected.

Health Minister Jose Angel Cordova announced the development. He also believed that the measures taken by the government to avoid public gatherings are taking effect.

Mexico is on a 5-day holiday. Public schools and businesses have also been shut up due to the lethal pandemic.

Meanwhile, the outbreak is hitting the country's economy as the Mexican Association of Hotels and Motels (AMHM) reported on Friday cancellation of 90 percent in hotel reservations and national and international airlines also reported 35 percent of cancellation for flights inside, to and from Mexico.

The AMHM said that in different places of the country, hotel occupancy has dropped to historical low and that some 100,000 employees of the hotel sector are on risk of losing their jobs.

"The economy of the accommodation establishments is being directly affected," the AMHM said.

(Xinhua News Agency May 2, 2009)