Patricia churns toward Mexico's Pacific coast

Tropical storm Patricia strengthened off Mexico's Pacific coast on Wednesday, as it churns toward two major cargo ports and is projected to hit the coast by Friday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Wednesday.

Shipping hubs Manzanillo and Lázaro Cárdenas are both within a hurricane watch area set by the NHC, and the storm is forecast to become a hurricane by Thursday night.

None of Mexican state oil giant Pemex's major installations lie in the projected path of the storm.

Patricia is located about 265 miles (426 km) south of the beach resort of Acapulco.

The storm has maximum sustained winds of about 60 miles per hour (97 km/hr), which are expected to strengthen over the next couple days, and is moving toward the west at 16 mph (26 km/h).

The NHC said a turn to the west-northwest is expected by Wednesday night.