The early signs of recovery are there. After slumping badly for more than two years, maquiladora activity in Ciudad Juárez appears to be rebounding.

            Spurred by the fourth quarter success of the U.S. economy in 2003, Mexico’s automotive and computer industries have begun to restore some of the jobs lost during the two-year U.S. recession. And while China continues to attract attention as a competitive offshore destination, statistics indicate Mexico remains an attractive choice and Juárez is again seeing maquila growth. Juárez maquila employment has reached a high not seen since early 2002.

            Juárez is showing the signs of emerging from its slump. According to an area real estate services firm, Juárez had nearly 3 million square feet in new leases during 2002. Several electronics companies located new operations or expanded existing plants in Juárez to take advantage of the city’s proximity to the U.S. market.

            “While maquiladoras have experienced a slowdown in the last few years, I’m glad that one of the causes appears to be behind us – the sluggish economy of the U.S. starting in the year 2000,” says Antonio O. Garza, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. “Both the maquiladora sector and the overall Mexican economy will benefit from the recovery underway.”

            Juárez, across the border from El Paso, Texas, is still the number one location for production sharing in North America. In fact, this city alone accounts for about 20 percent of all Mexico’s production sharing. More than 70 of the maquiladora plants in Juárez are owned by Fortune 500 corporations; among these facilities are telecommunications, electronic assembly plants, clean room manufacturing for medical supplies, consumer appliances, and automotive industry manufacturing. A growing percentage of employment generated by maquiladoras has been in technical and administrative positions rather than direct labor.

            Juárez boasts several of the top names in technology. Companies such as Delphi, RCA-Thomson, Scientific Atlanta, Emerson, Ford, Chrysler, Packard Electric, Yazaki and Honeywell operate here. In all, there are still nearly 300 production-sharing plants in operation in Juárez, numbers that belie the notion that maquilas are leaving Mexico for China.

            “Many point to China, with its low labor cost, as the main reason that companies have moved their facilities from Mexico to Asia,” says Garza. “While this is certainly a...

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