CTT Corridor Drives 47% of Industrial Demand in Mexico City: CBRE

Mexico City is strengthening its industrial sector thanks to strong demand, historically low vacancy, and increasing levels of foreign direct investment (FDI), particularly in manufacturing and logistics, reports CBRE Mexico. In its Marketview Industrial Mexico City 2Q25 report, CBRE Mexico outlines the most recent trends shaping the industrial real estate sector in the city and its metropolitan area. 

In 2Q25, gross absorption, which includes renewals and pre-leases, reached 331,000m², primarily driven by pre-leasing activity in industrial corridors such as Zumpango-AIFA and Tultitlan. Cumulative gross absorption for the first half of the year totaled 640,000m².

Net absorption, which measures actual space occupation, reached 252,000m² in the second quarter, for a 1H25 total of 439,000m², representing a 497% increase compared to 1H24, and 97% above pre-pandemic levels from 1H19.

The vacancy rate stood at 1.5% by the end of 2Q25, showing a slight increase from the previous quarter but still below 2024 levels. The Cuautitlan, Tultitlan, and Tepotzotlan (CTT) corridor remains the primary demand driver, accounting for 47% of total activity. It also recorded one of the lowest vacancy rates in the market, with the entire area averaging just 0.8%.

Foreign Investment Backs Industrial Growth

According to preliminary data from the Ministry of Economy, Mexico attracted US$21.4 billion in FDI between January and March 2025, a 5% increase compared to 1Q24. The industrial sector captured the lion’s share, totaling US$12.2 billion, up 10% YoY, with 76% directed toward manufacturing and 18% toward mining.

The United States remained the leading investor, accounting for 39% of total FDI, followed by the Netherlands (8%) and Australia (6%).

Construction Pipeline Grows Amid Pre-Leasing Surge

The construction pipeline reached 433,765m², with new projects mainly concentrated in Cuautitlan (63%), Tultitlan (25%), and Last Mile zones (12%). Notably, 21% of this space is already pre-leased, underscoring a growing trend toward securing space before completion.

The planned project pipeline increased significantly from the previous quarter, exceeding 3.3 million m². Of this total, 65% is allocated to Build-to-Suit developments, while 35% corresponds to speculative buildings. The Zumpango–AIFA corridor leads this pipeline with 54%, followed by CTT (26%) and Hidalgo (15%).

Class A industrial inventory in Mexico City’s metro area grew by 411,000m² in the 1H25, bringing total supply to 11.98 million m², an annual increase of 10.9%. Cuautitlan contributed 73% of new space, followed by Tultitlan (17%), Huehuetoca-Tepeji (4%), Last Mile (3%), and Vallejo-Azcapotzalco (2%).

By the end of 3Q25, the inventory is expected to surpass 12 million m².

Logistics companies led the market, accounting for 69% of the total transacted space, while e-commerce represented the remaining 31%.

Mexican firms represented 65% of the transactions, while Argentinian companies accounted for 35%. Average transaction sizes varied by corridor, with Zumpango-AIFA seeing an average transaction size of 52,000m², CTT of 9,000m², and the inner-city corridors (Vallejo, Last Mile) of 3,000m².

A defining trend this quarter was the dominance of pre-leasing, which represented 79% of reported transactions.