As of the third quarter of 2022, Mexico registered a record of over $32 billion in foreign direct investment. Moreover, the country’s business leaders expect Mexico to lead Latin American direct foreign investment in 2023.

Mexico is the door to Latin American investment

According to business representatives interviewed by the Spanish news organization EFE, Mexico could become the investment center for the entire American continent

“Mexico can be a great door (investment) for North America and South America,” said Francisco Cervantes, the president of the Business Coordinating Council (CCE), in the context of a meeting of the business council of the Pacific Alliance that was recently held in Mexico City.

At the meeting, Mexican business leadership, which contributes significantly to the country’s gross domestic product, indicated that Mexico must increasingly build confidence in its security situation and climate for business so that foreign direct investments “continue landing.”

Cervantes also considered that it would be vital for investments to increase in the south-southeast sector of the country where there is greater economic need.

He commented that it is anticipated that the primary beneficiaries of the realignment of supply and value chains in the world are Mexican micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), which will be able to take advantage of Latin American investment in “nearshoring” (outsourcing) to grow.

Record of leading Latin American investment

According to data from the Mexican Ministry of Economy, as of the third quarter of 2022, Mexico successfully captured a record 32.1 billion dollars of foreign direct investment.

The president of the Employers’ Confederation of the Mexican Republic (Coparmex), José Medina-Mora, observed that Coparmex members signed the Guadalajara Declaration with business organizations in Latin America, which, among other activities, promotes the flow of investments between Latin American countries. Mexico’s active participation in these international efforts is critical to maintaining its leading Latin American investment record.

“In addition to Mexico, the Guadalajara Declaration was signed by business organizations representing Chile, Peru, and Colombia. These are the nations that form the Pacific Alliance. In addition to these three nations, there is interest from other countries that are currently observers of the Alliance. These include nations such as Ecuador, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil”, he shared.

Medina-Mora expressed that it is necessary to establish a new regional model characterized by inclusive development, “not just for Mexico, but for Latin America.”

We are convinced that economic development is necessary, but more is needed from the business sector to attract more Latin American investment. Economic growth for the region has to go hand in hand with social development,” Medina-Mora said.

Within the framework of the meeting of the business council of the Pacific Alliance, the Mexican Secretary of Economy, Raquel Buenrostro, assured that “those companies that look to Pacific Alliance countries as a prosperous destination for their investments will find the conditions are in place for expanding their bottom line.”

She stated that member countries of the Pacific Alliance are eager to “carry out foreign direct investment projects by facilitating their landing and expansion in Latin America. “We are interested in the prosperity of the companies that settle in our countries and that share with us in this common objective,” added Buenrostro.

In an interview with EFE, Pedro Furtado de Oliveira, director of the International Labor Organization (ILO) for Mexico and Cuba, considered that the new labor laws in Mexico establish a solid base to attract foreign direct investment that generates more decent jobs. As a result, he anticipates that Mexico will continue to be the leader in Latin American investment.

Recently, not only has there been interest expressed by companies in South and North America, but Mexican businessmen themselves have raised their hands to, in the same way, promote increased investment in the country to keep its position of leadership in capturing Latin American investment

Mexico seeks investment in wind energy

This is the case of the Mexican Wind Energy Association, which indicated an opportunity and investment in wind infrastructure in the country of approximately 15 billion dollars in the coming years.  Wind projects are aimed at decarbonizing the Mexican economy.

Likewise, the Confederation of Industrial Chambers ( Concamin ) assured the landing of the necessary investment to install factories that produce lithium batteries. Projects of this type will promote the transition to electric vehicles, as the Mexican Government intends, declared José Abugaber, president of said organization.

According to the Mexican Ministry of Economy, more than 400 US companies in Asia could move their plants to Mexico. The “nearshoring” trend will drive this Latin American investment. In addition to foreign direct investment captured from US firms, the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs anticipates additional FDI of more than 6 billion dollars from companies from China and South Korea.

Investment flows to Latin America reached 134 billion dollars last year.  This figure is compared to 88 billion dollars in 2020.

Foreign direct investment in Latin America and the Caribbean has recovered from the pandemic-induced slump it experienced and has grown 56% to reach a total of $134 billion in 2021.  This is demonstrated in data presented in the World Investment Report 2022 from UNCTAD, published on June 9.

FDI flows to the region plummeted by 45% in 2020.  This figure represents the largest decline recorded in developing regions that year.

The rebound in 2021 was fueled by a record number of 317 new foreign direct investment projects announced across the region, an increase of 61% compared to 2020.

James Zahn, director of UNCTAD’s Division of Investment and Enterprises, recently expressed that, “Growth was also strong in traditional industries such as manufacturing, electricity infrastructure development, and insurance and financial services.”

Although FDI flows increased in all three Latin American and Caribbean subregions (excluding financial centers), some national economies suffered further declines in investment due to the continuing economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic and, in some cases, political instability.

South America saw FDI grow by 74% to 88 billion dollars

Increased global demand for raw materials and green minerals helped fuel strong foreign direct investment in Latin America, especially in South American economies.

According to the report, the main recipient countries, including Brazil, Chile, and Colombia, saw FDI increase as investment returned to flow into the mining and energy sectors.

South America’s largest economy, Brazil, saw total foreign direct investment grow by 78% to $50 billion. Sectors that benefited from this influx of capital include automobile manufacturing, electronics, information technology, financial services, and agribusiness,

The value of FDI greenfield projects announced in the country increased by 35%, while the number of international project financing deals increased by 32%.

US-based Bravo Motor’s $4.4 billion project to make electric vehicles, batteries, and other components in Brazil.

Among the financing operations for international projects, the largest was the construction of an offshore wind farm for 5.9 billion dollars, sponsored by Ocean Winds, a Spain-based energy provider.

FDI flows to Chile increased by 32%, to 13 billion dollars, sustained by several large acquisitions and a renewed interest in mining projects.

The number of international project financing agreements in the country increased by 80%. One of the most important is the construction of a 3 billion dollar ammonia plant by a group of investors, including Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (Denmark), Austria Energy Group, Oko Wind, and Erneuerbare Energieerzeugungs (Austria). The plant will have its own onshore wind farm, electrolyzers, and port facilities.

In Colombia, foreign investment grew by 26% to 9 billion dollars. This increase was driven by new entries in the manufacturing sector and in transportation, logistics, and communications services. Meanwhile, flows to Argentina and Peru have recovered to pre-pandemic levels.

FDI inflows in Mexico and Central America rebounded 30% to 42 billion dollars

The largest economy in the region, Mexico, recorded an increase in FDI of only 13%, to 32 billion dollars.  This made the country the second largest recipient in the subregion, behind Brazil.

However, the number of FDI greenfield projects announced in the country, an indicator of future investment plans, increased by 43% compared to 2020.

The greatest leap occurred in information and communication technologies. The Chinese giant Huawei, for example, announced that it would open a $4.5 billion cloud data center in Mexico.

With new investments in special economic zones, foreign direct investment to Costa Rica returned to pre-pandemic levels, nearly doubling to $3.2 billion.

In Guatemala, FDI reached a record level of 3.5 billion dollars.

FDI in the Caribbean increased by 39% to 3.8 billion dollars

The growth of external investment drove the rebound in FDI in the Caribbean economies. The Dominican Republic was the largest recipient of foreign direct investment to the region.

The island country saw its FDI increase by 21% to 3.1 billion dollars. Flows increased in mining, financial services, and special economic zones that contain manufacturing plants.

Main FDI trends by sector in the region

The Latin American and Caribbean region saw a general increase in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. Although the number increased by 49% to 244 operations, the total value of net sales (8 billion dollars) was practically unchanged from the previous year.

The services sector posted the largest increase in net sales, up 12%, to $6.4 billion, mainly in the financial and energy supply industries.

Announced regional investments increased by 16%, with most commitments going to the automotive, information and communication, and extractive industries.

The value of international project financing deals announced in the region doubled, exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Large transport infrastructure projects, especially in Brazil, and mining and renewable energy activities throughout the region were the biggest contributors to this rebound in levels of foreign direct investment.