Logistics competitiveness is no longer measured solely by opinions. The World Bank (WB) has introduced a profound transformation of its international assessment by replacing the traditional Logistics Performance Index , based primarily on surveys of industry professionals, with the Logistics Performance Indicators (LPI) 2.0 , a system built with millions of operational records of shipments, vessels, and cargo movements.
The new methodology abandons the overall rating and the single country ranking. Instead, it incorporates 21 indicators—six core and 15 supplementary— that separately analyze the connectivity, speed, and reliability of maritime, air, and postal supply chains. The first results correspond to 2023 and 2024.
The change alters how logistics performance is assessed. A country can no longer simply boast a position in a global ranking ; now it must demonstrate how many markets it directly connects, how long cargo remains immobilized, and how predictable its logistics processes are.
For Mexico, the first analysis leaves one clear conclusion: the country maintains competitive maritime connectivity , but continues to lag behind in the speed at which goods leave its ports.
Maritime connectivity: Mexico surpasses Brazil and Canada, but remains far behind the leaders
In 2024, Mexico was connected by direct maritime services to 52 economies , one less than a year earlier.
Economies connected through direct maritime services (2024)
Country |
Connected economies |
| USA | 97 |
| China | 94 |
| Netherlands | 91 |
| Singapore | 83 |
| Panama | 59 |
| Mexico | 52 |
| Canada | 46 |
| Brazil | 43 |
| Chili | 22 |
The indicator shows that Mexico maintains a maritime network superior to that of Canada, Brazil, and Chile . However, it is still far behind major global logistics hubs such as the United States, China, the Netherlands, and Singapore.
However, the World Bank warns that connectivity represents only one part of logistics performance . The real challenge lies in transforming that network of services into goods available for production and consumption.
The main delay occurs when the cargo arrives in the country
That is where Mexico has its worst result.
During 2024, import containers remained an average of 9.3 days inside the port before departing for their final destination.
Average stay of imported container (2024)
Country |
Average days |
| Singapore | 2.1 |
| Chili | 3.8 |
| Netherlands | 3.9 |
| USA | 4.2 |
| Canada | 5.0 |
| China | 5.9 |
| Panama | 6.2 |
| Brazil | 7.3 |
| Mexico | 9.3 |
Mexico registered the worst performance among the economies compared.
On average, one container remained:
- 3.4 days longer than in China.
- 5.1 days longer than in the United States.
- 7.2 days longer than in Singapore.
The result is even more significant because the indicator doesn’t just measure port performance . It also incorporates the time associated with customs clearance, inspections, document release, goods removal, availability of land transport, and road and rail access.
The median length of stay also places Mexico at the bottom of the group, while the dispersion of times increased between 2023 and 2024, a sign that the system not only became slower, but also less predictable.
China is a particularly relevant example . Despite operating the world’s largest manufacturing platform and one of its largest port systems, it maintained an average stay of 5.9 days, well below Mexico’s.
In air cargo the difference is reduced, but it persists
Air transport shows better performance for Mexico, although it also registered a deterioration compared to 2023.
Average stay of air imports (2024)
Country |
Average days |
| Singapore | 0.3 |
| Netherlands | 0.6 |
| USA | 1.1 |
| Canada | 1.1 |
| China | 1.3 |
| Chili | 1.8 |
| Mexico | 2.0 |
| Panama | 2.1 |
| Brazil | 2.6 |
Mexico ranked only behind Panama and Brazil within the American continent, although still far from the main international hubs .
While China reduced its average time from 1.5 to 1.3 days between 2023 and 2024, Mexico went from 1.8 to two days.
Postal logistics are also losing speed
Another of the new indicators of the LPI 2.0 corresponds to business-to-business (B2B) postal logistics , used as a reference to evaluate e-commerce and small-scale international shipments.
Mexico slightly increased its connectivity, but the average delivery time increased.
Average B2B postal delivery time (2024)
Country |
Average days |
| Singapore | 1.5 |
| Canada | 3.7 |
| Netherlands | 4.2 |
| USA | 4.5 |
| China | 7.0 |
| Chili | 9.5 |
| Mexico | 10.9 |
| Panama | 13.6 |
| Brazil | 18.7 |
Although Mexico expanded its postal connections to 84 economies, the average delivery time increased from 9.6 to 10.9 days between 2023 and 2024.
China followed the opposite trend: it significantly increased its connectivity and reduced its average delivery time from 7.7 to seven days.
A new way to measure logistics competitiveness
The World Bank’s main contribution is not simply to change one ranking for another.
LPI 2.0 shifts the analysis from available infrastructure to the actual performance of supply chains .
Now it matters less how many cranes, terminals or routes a country has and more how long it takes for merchandise to be reintegrated into the economy.
Under that logic, Mexico appears as an economy with relatively solid maritime connectivity, superior to that of Brazil, Canada and Chile, but with important areas of opportunity in the liberalization of goods.
The comparison with China is particularly illustrative. Both countries actively participate in international trade and have extensive manufacturing platforms. However, China not only connects directly with almost twice as many economies as Mexico, but also moves its imports more quickly.
The conclusion of the World Bank’s new system is clear: logistical competitiveness will no longer depend solely on installed capacity, but on the speed and certainty with which cargo manages to traverse the entire supply chain.
Comment and follow us on LinkedIn: @Enrique Duarte Rionda / @GrupoT21
