Mexico Exceeds Pre-Pandemic US Trade Levels

President López Obrador celebrated that Mexico's trade with the US has reached historical records, exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, trade relations with other countries remain strong as investment continues to increase. However, experts have accused Mexico of not diversifying its trade more, especially with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.

During his Fourth Government Report, López Obrador read a letter sent to him by US President Joe Biden, in which he highlights that trade between the two countries increased significantly. López Obrador stressed that the increase in trade shows the mutual respect between both countries and their willingness to cooperate further: “According to information that my friend President Biden sent me in a letter, I quote him: ‘bilateral trade in goods between the US and Mexico has reached US$384 billion, exceeding pre-pandemic levels to reach a historical record.’”

Regarding the commercial relationship with other countries, López Obrador guaranteed that Mexico is still considered a safe jurisdiction with much potential to invest and close deals. “Foreign investment continues to increase and during our government in two years, historical investment levels have been reached. In the first half of this year, foreign investment grew by 12 percent compared to the same period last year," said López Obrador.

Although investment and trade have increased, experts criticized Mexico's sustained laser focus on trade with the US and Canada. Of the 12 treaties that the country currently has in force, the US, Mexico and Canada Agreement (USMCA) represents 64.41 percent of Mexico's trade. “Mexico is one of the countries with the most treaties. But what are they for? The focus of entrepreneurs has always been the US. For years, the government thought of strengthening trade with Central and South America. However, it never materialized,” said Jorge Molina Larrondo, an independent Public Policy and Risk Analysis Consultant.

With 23 Free Trade Agreements, Mexico ranks seventh in the world, reports the World Trade Organization (WTO). The country is only surpassed by the EU (46), the UK (38), Chile (31), the European Free Trade Association (EFTA, 29), Singapore (27) and Turkey (24). Mexico’s main trading partners after the US are China, with 11 percent of the market share, South Korea, with 2.6 percent, Germany, with 2.5 percent, Canada, with 2.4 percent and Japan, with 2.1 percent.