The Mexican Government at the end of February 2022 issued the preliminary results of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the country, which reached 31 thousand 621 million dollars, where manufacturing predominates with 39.7%.

The United States and Spain are the countries of origin of the capital that occupy the first and second place with 47.5% and 13.7%, respectively.

This figure represents an increase of 8.7% compared to the figure for 2020, but it is still 3.9% below the amount raised in 2019, the year before the pandemic.

The first five positions are occupied by Mexico City with 5,056.9 million dollars, followed by Nuevo León, which occupied the second position and precedes Baja California with 2,212.8 million.

Fourth and fifth place go to Jalisco and Chihuahua with 2,098.3 and 1,843.4 million dollars, respectively. As an example, only in Monterrey, FDI grew by 30%, which represents more than double what was achieved at the national level, estimated at 9%.

Check here: Last mile, driving demand in the country's urban centers

In terms of gross industrial demand, the entities of the north and the border manage to accumulate 58% of the national total and a good part of this amount is due to the relocation of productive processes that were previously carried out or supplied with raw materials and semi-finished products. processed from the United States or Asian countries.

With the arrival of the pandemic, the relocation of various production processes was accelerated, due to the pressure exerted on supply chains, which were affected by the escalation of transportation costs and the obligation to comply with delivery times.

This situation resulted in several parent companies evaluating Mexico as the ideal partner, generating important advantages in costs and time.

Currently, Mexico has 12 Free Trade Agreements signed with 46 countries, according to the Government of Mexico, the most recognized being the T-MEC, which is precisely the architect of the important commercial flow of the northern border with the United States and Canada.

The northern cities of Monterrey, Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez and Saltillo appear in the ranking of the five entities with the highest industrial demand in 2021, which together with Mexico City occupy the first positions at the national level.

Monterrey specifically accumulated a gross demand of 1,389 million square meters in 2021 and in the first two months of 2022 it almost reached 196 thousand square meters, which represents 30% of the total nationwide.

Of interest: The increase in logistics has been key for Guadalajara to be one of the leaders in industrial demand

Tijuana occupied the third position of the total for 2021 with 770 thousand square meters mobilized by manufacturing that during the 4Q 2021 corresponded to the logistics, automotive, aerospace, manufacturing and packaging industry.

In these northern entities, as well as in Ciudad Juárez, Saltillo, Mexicali, Tecate and Chihuahua, there has been a notable presence of the expansions and installation of suppliers of the production process supply chains that have been developing for some time in the region.

Industrial clusters have played an increasingly important role in regional organization and specialization, where nearshoring has consolidated a great opportunity for industrial growth for Mexico and specifically for border entities.

Simplifying logistics and transportation processes affects the increase in response capacity with shorter delivery times and adaptability to possible crises that arise from interruptions in the supply chain and that is where Mexico has all the potential.