Among these, the Netherlands leads the increase with an investment of 1.91 billion dollars until the third quarter of 2024, which represents a growth of 238% compared to the same period in 2023, according to data from the Ministry of Economy.
Belgium also increased its participation, reporting an investment of 1.528 billion dollars, an increase of 101%. For its part, Germany registers an FDI of 3.889 billion, marking an increase of 34.2%.
From the National Council of the Maquiladora and Export Manufacturing Industry (Index) it is observed that Europe is also focusing its sights on Mexico on how to set up companies and how they can join the value chains, being suppliers to incorporate into production lines and then export to the United States.
But it specifies that it is not a triangulation, as is thought of Chinese companies, because there must be a tariff change and a transformation in the product.
What sectors are they targeting?
The data indicate that in all cases they are concentrated in the manufacturing sector, in the case of the Netherlands and Germany they are directed to the automotive sector.
From January to September 2024, the Netherlands recorded an FDI of 1,445 million dollars for the manufacture of transport equipment, being the most representative; in second place, with a more conservative value, is the beverage industry, with 204 million.
Germany focuses its investment on the manufacture of cars and trucks, with 1,418 million dollars, and on auto parts, with 1,058 million.
The Belgian registry, for this period, only shows that it is for the manufacturing industries; however, in the information on the commercial relationship of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, an investment in beverages and tobacco is identified.
Reinvestments and intercompany accounts
Regarding the type of investment, from January to September 2024, in the Netherlands, intercompany accounts stand out, which are transactions originated by debts between companies established in Mexico and other related companies residing abroad, since they represent 71% of the total; reinvestments, with 28.3%; and new investments, with only 0.3%.
In Belgium, intercompany accounts also dominate, with 61.2%; reinvestments represent 38.5% and new ones are zero (0.05%).
For Germany, reinvestments are the most important, with 54.6%; reinvestments mean 43.8% and new ones represent 1.5%.
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Not everything is a party with the Europeans
Just as there are countries that are betting more on Mexico, there are others that are leaving them aside, as is the case of Spain, France and Sweden.
The same data from the Economy report a negative flow of FDI for these countries. Between January and September 2024, Spain’s was -903.4 million dollars, France’s -875.6 million and Sweden’s -136.7 million.
Renata Zilli, researcher at the European Center for International Political Economy (ECIPE), points out in her analysis: “Mexico: the missing piece in the EU’s transatlantic perspective”, that Spain has been Mexico’s largest source of FDI, but this trend seems to be changing.
In 2023, Germany surpassed Spain as the main investor, revealing Mexico’s growing attractiveness as a manufacturing center for European car manufacturers.
In the number of companies that present FDI flows in Mexico, Germany reports 208 in the first nine months of 2024, while Spain registers 184.
They appear in the investment announcements
From January to September 2024, Mexico recorded 175,447 million dollars in investment announcements.
Of the list of 34 countries that have some announcement, Germany occupies the third place with 12,159 million dollars, in fifth place is Denmark, with 10,170 million, according to the monitoring of the Ministry of Economy.
Although some European countries do not present a positive flow of FDI, France does appear in these investment announcements with 8,024 million dollars, Spain with 6,420 million and Sweden with 776.5 million.
The ECIPE researcher highlights that Mexico is undoubtedly attractive for Europe and FDI due to its economic profile, because its exports are oriented towards manufacturing, the result of decades of integration of the supply chain with the United States and Canada.
Source: expansion
