The world's third-richest man called on the U.S. to "pass a good part of its industry" to Latin America in order to stop the flow of migrants, as President Bush continues to face negative reaction to his Latin American tour.

Mexico's Carlos Slim spoke at a news conference Monday just hours before a scheduled visit by President Bush to Mexico, Reuters reports.

Among his comments Slim suggested that U.S. companies should build state of the art hospitals on the Mexican side of the 2,000-mile border with the U.S. to help "reduce health care costs in the United States,"

The Mexican billionaire complained that the fence now being built along the U.S.-Mexico border to stop immigrants from entering the United States was illegal and even "absurd".

"What is needed is legal immigration, immigration accords, but not one just for highly qualified people," he said.

In a separate development, Guatemalan President Oscar Berger urged President Bush Monday to revise U.S. immigration policy.

Bush has promised an overhaul of U.S. immigration laws before Congress disbands for its summer recess, saying, "it seems like to me we've got to get this done by August."

Bush was pressed by reporters to explain his approval of construction of the border fence as well as raids in Massachusetts last week by immigration police, which sent hundreds of Central American workers back to their native countries.

Some of the illegal workers were forced to leave their U.S.-born children behind.

"I'm sure they don't want to be sent home, but nevertheless, we enforce laws," Bush said. "You've got to understand that when we enforce the law we do so in a fair and rational way."

In a Catholic mass Sunday at Guatemala City's Metropolitan Cathedral, Cardinal Rodolfo Quezada chastised the U.S. government for the Massachusetts raids.

"Today I feel a pain in my heart and I invite you to pray for these children and their parents," the Cardinal said to worshipers.

Mexico is the last stop on Bush's five-nation Latin American tour, a trip which has also taken him to Brazil, Uruguay, Colombia, and Guatemala.

HRR/MR/BG