The Mexican automotive industry showed mixed signs during May 2026 : while light vehicle production registered a drop, exports grew due to demand from the US market, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) announced .

According to the Administrative Registry of the Automotive Industry of Light Vehicles (RAIAVL), in the fifth month of the year 342,926 units were produced  in automotive plants installed in Mexico, 3.7% less than in the same month of 2025.

Meanwhile, in the first five months of 2026, 1,642,083 cars were manufactured, representing a drop of 0.09% compared to the same period last year.

The report noted that the sector’s production structure continued to be dominated by  light trucks , which accounted for 80% of total production in the January-May period, while the remainder corresponded to automobiles.

In January-May 2026, Stellantis  was one of the brands that showed good performance in terms of its manufacturing with an increase of 37% over the same period in 2025. It was followed by Volkswagen with an increase of 34 percent.

Exports rebound

Last May, exports totaled 306,288 units , which represented an increase of 1.7% compared to the same month in 2025.

Meanwhile, in the January-May period of this year, 1,388,236 light vehicles were shipped abroad , an increase of 4% compared to the same period last year.

The main destination for vehicles assembled in Mexico continues to be the United States , a market that accounted for 75.4% of international shipments.

Volkswagen and Stellantis were the brands with the largest increases in their exports, with increases of 61% and 45.1% year-on-year, respectively, during the first five months of 2026.

Data from last May shows an industry that maintains its export capacity, although it faces adjustments in its production.

Factors such as changes in vehicle electrification and the reorganization of supply chains influence the performance of the automotive sector, which is one of Mexico’s manufacturing pillars.

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After advancing last October, the Mexican automotive industry slowed down again in November 2025, registering 148,359 units sold , a drop of 0.3% compared to the same month in 2024, when 148,864 cars were sold.

In the January-November period, vehicle sales reached 1,370,186 units , which represented a 1% increase compared to the same period of the previous year, when the total was 1,357,182 cars sold, according to figures from the Administrative Registry of the Automotive Industry of Light Vehicles (RAIAVL) , released this Wednesday by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) .

According to Inegi records, this is the third best January-November cycle in the last 10 years.

Among the best-performing brands in the first 11 months of 2025 are Nissan  with  17.9%  of the market. They are followed by General Motors  with  12.9% ,  Volkswagen  with 11.3% , Toyota  with  8.3% , and KIA with 7.4% , according to the Mexican Association of Automotive Distributors (AMDA)  and the  Mexican Automotive Industry Association (AMIA) .

According to the report from these organizations, some Asian brands showed negative sales performance last November. Isuzu reported a 38.4% decrease in sales , Foton a 31.6% drop , Mitsubishi an 11.1% decrease , Suzuki a 7.7% decrease, and Toyota a 4.3% decrease .

The strong pace of vehicle sales recorded in September and October fell in the eleventh month of the year, due to the United States’ tariff policy and lower consumption in the Mexican market.

The November result also emphasizes that there is still no sustained recovery of the domestic market; however, the Mexican automotive industry remains resilient in the face of constant trade changes.

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