The Automotive Industry Thrives Showing Continued Interest in Foreign Investment in Mexico [2]
Most people know the Mexico-U.S. border for something other than their most important industrial sector [3], the automotive industry. Despite widely publicized violence that has taken place in Mexico, the auto industry is still thriving.
Last year Reynosa [4] added 4,000 jobs to the Mexican auto industry. These plants refuse to let the persistent violence affect their business; foreign investment in Mexico continues to roll in and plans for factory expansions are in motion.
In 2010, $114 billion in international freight was transferred through Laredo and nearly half of that was auto industry related. When the U.S. recession hit, the auto industry saw a decline of 15-18 percent but is expected to have a 10 percent increase by the end of 2011.
Although the auto industry and foreign investment in Mexico thrives, manufacturers saw major declines after the recent tsunami in Japan which has led to discussion about moving away from single-source suppliers and spreading the risk.
“What violence? What organized crime?” said Roger Creery, in an interview shortly before his resignation as executive director of the Laredo Development Foundation [5].
This sentiment sums up the forward progress that is being made by the Mexican auto industry despite the hardships that all industries face during this tough economic time.