The Mexican automotive industry started 2026 with its foot on the gas, showing a solid performance in the sale of new units in the domestic market, according to figures released this Thursday by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) .
In January of this year, vehicle sales in Mexico totaled 131,472 units , representing an 8.7% increase compared to the same month in 2025, when 120,953 cars were sold in the country.
This is the best result for a January in the last nine years, according to data from the Administrative Registry of the Automotive Industry of Light Vehicles (RAIAVL) .
According to the Mexican Association of Automotive Distributors (AMDA) and the Mexican Automotive Industry Association (AMIA) , the brands that stood out in vehicle sales in January 2026 were Nissan with 18.8% market share, General Motors with 12.4%, Volkswagen with 10.7%, Toyota with 8.9%, and KIA with 6.9%.
Conversely, in the first month of the year, Renault reported a decrease in its placements of 12.5% compared to 2025, Ford fell 5.2%, Volkswagen slowed 5% and Suzuki 1.7 percent.
Furthermore, the report highlighted the performance of Chinese brands , which continue to gain ground in the Mexican market. JAC registered a 3.2% increase in sales in January 2026 compared to 2025, MG Motor saw a 55% increase, and Geely experienced a 245.3% increase.
The positive momentum of the Mexican automotive sector shown in December 2025 in terms of vehicle sales continued into January 2026, reflecting the strength of this industry in a volatile environment framed by tariff uncertainty.
It is worth remembering that a total of 1,524,583 units were sold throughout 2025 , which meant an increase of 1.3% compared to the accumulated total in the same period of 2024, according to data from Inegi.
According to analysts, this year the Mexican economy and private consumption will develop in a cautious environment, which could affect vehicle purchases in the domestic market, coupled with external pressures such as protectionist trade policies worldwide.
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