Eighty percent of the vehicles Mexico manufactures for shipment abroad are exported to the United States , so the 25% tariffs recently imposed on imported cars by Donald Trump, president of Mexico, will affect several automotive brands.
According to figures from the Administrative Registry of the Light Vehicle Automotive Industry (RAIAVL) of the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) , in 2024 Mexico exported three million 479 thousand 086 vehicles , with two million 771 thousand 287 units sent to the United States alone .
In this context, General Motors (GM) exported 830,820 units , of which 711,582 were sent to the United States, representing 86 percent . Meanwhile, of Mexico’s total vehicle exports to the United States, GM accounted for 26 percent .
The models that GM exported the most to its northern neighbor were the Equinox SUV , with 219,071 units ; GMC Sierra , with 140,106 vehicles ; and the Silverado 2500 double cab , with 137,341 vehicles , during that period.
Ford would be another of the firms affected by Trump’s tariffs, since it shipped 379,849 cars abroad from Mexico , of which 358,366 units were for the United States, which represented 94% of its exports in 2024. Of the total shipments abroad from Mexico to its northern neighbor, 13% were from Ford.
Maverick, Bronco Sport and Mustang Mach-E were the most exported models to the United States, with 165,337, 148,215 and 44,814 units , respectively.
According to data from INEGI (National Institute of Statistics and Geography), Nissan shipped 456,866 vehicles abroad , of which 326,682 were shipped to the United States from Mexico, representing 72 percent . The Japanese firm accounted for 12 percent of Mexico’s exports to the United States.
The models Nissan exported the most to the United States during this period were Sentra , with 179,767 units; Kicks , with 85,783 cars ; and Versa , with 49,398 vehicles.
From Mexico, Toyota exported 245,121 units to various countries , of which 227,849 were sent to the United States , representing 93% of its exports. Of the country’s total overseas shipments to its northern neighbor, 8% were from Toyota in 2024.
During that period, Chrysler exported 353,307 units from Mexico , while 314,272 vehicles went to the United States, representing 89 percent . This automaker accounted for 11 percent of Mexico’s exports to the United States.
KIA exported 167,115 units to the United States , representing 81% of its total exports. Six percent of Mexico’s car shipments to the United States were from the Korean company during this period.
In 2024, Honda exported 232,433 units from Mexico to various countries, of which 211,465 vehicles , or 91 percent , were shipped to the United States . Of the total car shipments from Mexico to the United States, the Japanese automaker accounted for 8 percent .
According to data from INEGI (National Institute of Statistics and Geography), Volkswagen shipped 231,138 vehicles to the United States , representing 71% of its exports, which totaled 326,217 units last year. The German firm accounted for 8% of Mexico’s auto exports to the northern neighbor.
Meanwhile, Mazda exported 141,933 units , of which 112,629 were shipped to the United States from Mexico , representing 79 percent . Its share of exports to the United States was 4 percent last year.
German companies Audi , BMW and Mercedes-Benz exported 55,846 , 38,426 and 15,918 vehicles to the United States , respectively, in 2024.
According to these figures, most automotive firms would be affected by the 25% tariff levied on vehicles imported by the United States, a measure that will take effect on April 2 and currently excludes auto parts that comply with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) .
Donald Trump announced at a press conference on March 26 that the tariff will apply to finished cars and trucks exported to the northern neighbor, including American brands whose cars are assembled abroad.
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