Short sea can help solve capacity issues out of Mexico

Mexico is rapidly becoming one of the shining stars of the automotive world. Total vehicle sales for the first three quarters of 2012 totaled 701,901 units, a significant 11.2%, increase over the same period in 2010.

The automotive industry accounts for 23% of the country’s total exports, with 80% of the value of those exports, including finished vehicles and component parts, destined for the United States. The remainder is shipped to more than 100 countries worldwide.

If vehicles and auto parts are taken together, Mexico is the fourth largest exporter in the world, higher than the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries.

In 2010, Mexico became the largest exporter of auto parts and vehicles to the US, greater than Canada, Germany and Japan.

This year, Mexican automotive exports will climb by around 4% to an all-time high, according to the president of the country’s auto association AMIA Eduardo Solis. Speaking to reporters last month, he announced that Mexico had exported a record 2.2 million vehicles in the first eleven months of last year and that the projected figure for 2013 is 2.45 million. By 2017, Mexico will have the capacity to produce four million vehicles per year and will be the seventh largest producer and third largest exporter of cars worldwide.

The importance of the automotive industry for the Mexican economy is beyond question. It accounts for 3.6% of the gross national product (GNP), 20.3% of the GNP of the manufacturing industry and is the principal generator of foreign currency.