The growth of Mexican manufacturing exports has not translated into a proportional increase in the value added generated within the country. This is due, among other factors, to the high dependence on imported components and limitations in strengthening domestic supply chains, according to the “Trade and Development Report 2026: The Geoeconomics of Development ,” published Friday by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) .
In the document, the organization acknowledges that geographical proximity to the United States , trade agreements, and regional production integration have consolidated Mexico as an important participant in North American manufacturing chains , particularly in the automotive, electronics, and agro-industrial industries.
This proximity has also contributed to manufactured goods accounting for more than 80% of Mexico’s merchandise exports in recent years. However, between 2000 and 2025, exports of information and communications technology (ICT) and electronics products increased from $45 billion to $110 billion, while Mexico ranked as the world’s sixteenth largest exporter of semiconductor devices last year.
Similarly, UNCTAD warns that the growth in exports with higher technological content has not translated into a proportional generation of domestic value. In the ICT and electronics sectors, the import intensity of intermediate inputs reaches 85.3%, one of the highest in Mexican manufacturing, while foreign value added represents 70.7% of the gross value of these exports. According to the organization, this dependence has limited the development of suppliers and links with domestic production chains.
The growth of high-value exports has had limited effects on strengthening national production chains , industrial modernization, and consolidating a local supplier base.
Automotive industry and USMCA review
The automotive industry faces similar challenges. Mexico has consolidated its position as a manufacturing platform linked to the North American market , particularly the United States, which received nearly 80% of Mexican light vehicle exports in 2024.
Similarly, the report notes that the joint review of the 2026 USMCA has placed automotive rules of origin, regional value content thresholds, and economic security criteria at the center of negotiations, which, according to UNCTAD , introduces regulatory uncertainty for the Mexican industry.
Finally, on this point, UNCTAD warns that Mexico’s participation in the global semiconductor value chain risks remaining concentrated in lower-margin, labor-intensive activities, mainly assembly, testing, and packaging.
Global trade continues to grow
In the international context, UNCTAD projects that global trade in goods and services will grow by around 4% in real terms during 2026, after registering an increase of 4.4% in 2025. In contrast, the growth of the world economy would slow from 2.9% to 2.6% in the same period.
The image in this article was generated using artificial intelligence.
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