Mexico’s automotive and electronics clusters should continue to be good areas for investment, but other, surprising, clusters are emerging for U.S. investors. Housing, the environment, airports and                      telecommunications are among other hot sectors identified by the U.S. Commercial Service as prime        destinations for U.S. capital.

      Top projected sectors for manufacturers or industry are:

      •Automotive

      •Electronics

      •Energy

      •Airports and ground support

      •Plastics

      •Telecommunications

      •Environment

      •Housing and construction

      •Security and safety

      The following information is provided by the U.S. Commercial Service.

Automotive

      The automotive industry continued to be the largest and fastest growing manufacturing sector in Mexico during 2005 and 2006.

      In late 2005 and early 2006, Mexico emerged with positive and encouraging results in the North American automobile industry. Mexico is rapidly becoming a more important strategic partner for automakers who want a competitive edge to succeed in the North American auto industry. In 2001, Mexico was the ninth largest producer of automotive vehicles in the world, manufacturing 1.92 million units (including trucks and buses). In 2004, production decreased to 1.5 million vehicles due to an economic slowdown. However, it grew to 1.6 million in 2005 and is expected to grow to more than 2.1 million in 2006.

      The accumulated production for the first quarter of 2006 was 54 percent ahead of the vehicles produced during the same period in 2005. Mexico will surpass the two million-unit annual production mark during 2006. As a result of new investments in their assembly lines and...

...Continued in the pages of Twin Plant News, Subscribe Today!