Our Senior Manager for Asia/Pacific Projects Mr Al Chu was present at the Mexico Aerospace Fair 2019, a commercial activity in the civil, military, security and defense aeronautical fields. The purpose of FAMEX is to bring together the leaders of the mentionned sectors to promote trade and the growth of the national aerospace industry in the region.

During the fair Mr Chu met with the leaders of the aeronautical as well as members of the Mexican government such as:

– Andrés Manuel López Obrador, President of Mexico
– Luisa María Alcalde Luján, Secretary of Labor in Mexico
– General Luis Crescencio Sandoval González, Secretary of Defense
– General Rafael Lira Bensemann, Commander of the Aerial Base of Tabasco
– General Rodolfo Rodríguez Quezada, President of FAMEX
– Mr Chu and members of the Aerospace Clusters

Where Can We Help You Next?

Over the past five years, retail investors and developers have added a new imprint to the familiar terrain of cheek-by-jowl, mom-and-pop stores across Mexico, building U.S.-style strip and destination malls with brand name tenants.

The trend is growing across Mexico. And, at the U.S.-Mexico border, the creation of a special border economic zone that will halve the VAT sales tax, as well as cut corporate taxes, and double the minimum wage is expected by some to spur even faster expansion.

“This city is seeing right now an explosion in mixed-use projects”

said Harold Hoekstra, the Tijuana-based director of mixed-use development at consulting firm NAI Mexico.

“You’ll see it across the country, too, say in Guadalajara, Monterrey, Juarez. Companies are seeing the potential to invest in these sectors,” he said.

The increase of retail projects, often combined with offices, hotels, and residences, is exactly the opposite of what is happening in the United States, where traditional customers have largely shunned malls for online shopping. According to various articles, the number of store closings in the United States was expected to be more than 10,000 in 2018. Malls are either closing completely or have become collections of empty stores.

Horton Plaza, a San Diego project that opened in 1985 and was credited with revitalizing the city’s downtown, has become something of an eyesore. It recently was sold to Los Angeles commercial real estate company Stockade Capital, which plans to turn the shopping center into a mix of retail and office space that could appeal to Silicon Valley technology companies.

In Mexico, there has been 5% annual growth in the gross leasable area of commercial centers and an increase of 7.5% in retail sales.

“We’re still 10 to 20 years away from online operations decimating mall store operations” Hoekstra said.

“Mexicans like to go shopping. The malls are very strong. The numbers are good.”

Most of the mall developers are Mexican or South American, he said.

Plaza Sendero has built and operates 19 malls across Mexico—in addition to Tijuana and Mexicali, in Culiacan, Los Mochis and Ciudad Obregon, among other cities.

Mexican company Planigrupo, with 43 years of experience, develops, designs, builds, markets, and administers shopping centers throughout Mexico.

In Tijuana, some of the projects are in a revitalizing city center or in far-reaching areas of the city where spreading populations have become concentrated.

The Alameda Otay Town Center, located near the airport and the Otay Mesa border crossing has 163 shops, six residential towers, two hotels, and a medical center with 90 offices. Green areas are pet friendly. The mall also offers cultural events, Wi-Fi, parking and valet parking, as well as an outdoor auditorium.

Closer to downtown, the two-story Paseo Chapultepec, in addition to shops, restaurants and beer pubs, includes walkways, terraces and galleries.

Tenants at the malls include well-known brand names such as Best Buy, Costco, Applebee’s and Home Depot. Apple has stores in malls in Tijuana, Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey.

South American brands also are becoming important mall tenants. Sodimac, a Chilean home improvement warehouse chain, is popping up. And Argentinian, Colombian and Peruvian stores are gaining a presence in Mexico, Hoekstra said.

Even though Mexican upscale department stores such as Liverpool and Palacio del Hierro are expanding to malls in the interior, he said, they are reluctant to establish operations in the border region because of the competition of their higher-end merchandise with U.S. retailers.

Many expect President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s creation of incentives for the border economic zone to spur even further development.

“It’s a nice windfall for retailers; it will provide an incentive to the area”

said Jose “Pepe” Larroque, a Baker & McKenzie partner who chairs the law firm’s global real estate practice group.

Still, he said, the special program is scheduled to last for only two years and then be reevaluated, “so it’s hard to do long-term planning.”

Many details of the new zone are still unknown, but companies must register to gain the economic perks, companies or their branches must already be established in the zone and new companies are supposed to have new equipment in the zone for the first time.

“It might generate more investment in the border zone, but it’s still unclear,” Larroque said.

For U.S. landlords, investors and operators of retail centers, shopping malls, lifestyle centers and similar projects investing in Mexico it’s different than in the United States, said NAI’s Hoekstra.

One criterion is the same on both sides of the border, however: “location, location, location.”

But the capitalization rate (or cap rate), the most popular measure through which real estate investments are assessed for their profitability and return potential, is not the same.

“The retail sector in the United States averages a 7% cap rate,” Hoekstra said. “On the Mexican side, you have to look at 9% or higher … The interesting thing is that those deals are there.”

When acquiring a retail property in Mexico, he said, investors should want to know who the tenants are—especially the anchor tenants, what the lease terms are and their reliability to remain as tenants and keep paying rent.

With many Mexican shopping centers including brands seen in the United States and Canada, investors could start with clients they have north of the border. “Walmart has been a driver,” Hoekstra said.

Lastly, he said, is there a market?

For a landlord, there are retail centers for sale in appropriate locations with the right set of criteria and there is land for sale to develop malls or mixed-used projects, he said.

For retailers wanting to make the decision to increase their presence or undertake a project in Mexico, he added, the Mexican middle class is growing and has increased purchasing power and infrastructure has improved.

At the border, noted Larroque, the special economic zone could move more wealth to the region. With the doubling of the minimum wage, he said,

“More people will be making more money and will have cash to spend—on housing, retail, trade and commerce.”

Plus, it is more difficult to cross the border to shop in the United States, he noted.

“What newcomers are going to be investing?” he asked. “That’s where the questions lie.”

 

This article was originally written by Diane Linquist and published in the February 2019 edition of the Border Now

 

NAI Mexico Announces:

Roberto Carrillo accepted into the Society of Industrial and Office Realtors (SIOR) on March 1, 2019.

Mr. Carrillo, Senior Vice President at NAI Mexico, is a 17-year veteran specializing in industrial corporate advisory and capital markets in Northwest Mexico. He has managed many of the largest industrial leases and portfolio acquisitions across the region.

Structuring more than 20 million SF for global clients, he has negotiated with the largest national funds and developers. Mr. Carrillo´s accounting specialty from the nationally renowned Monterrey Tech provides his clients tools and process to achieve their operations goals throughout Mexico and LatAm.

In 2018, his team structured and sold the Tijuana Portfolio: it consisted in 23 facilities totalling 1.3 million SF.

“We are proud to recognize Roberto as our newest SIOR recipient. Roberto’s consistent professionalism and exceptional service to each global client is now recognized, internationally.” noted CEO Gary Swedback

The Society of Industrial and Office Realtors® is the leading professional commercial and industrial real estate association, based in Washington, DC with  3000 individuals in more than 630 cities in 32 countries.

SIORs advisors are important to our global clients because:

• SIORs are the most qualified, successful, and experienced real estate advisors.
• SIORs are top producers recognized by developers, lenders and investors.
• Continuous professional education ensures SIORs lead industry practices for ethics, technology and performance.

NAI Global is the world’s leading managed network of commercial real estate firms. Members are market-leading firms across the U.S and worldwide, present in 400 offices in 60 countries and more than 6700 local market experts.

NAI Global brings together people and resources to deliver results for clients wherever needed. Therefore, clients come to NAI for deep local knowledge, and build their businesses on the power of NAI’s global network.

For more information please visit: www.naiglobal.com and www.sior.com

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s government said on Tuesday it had reached an agreement with Brazil on the free trade of light vehicles, subject to a 40 percent regional content requirement, paving the way for more open commerce between Latin America’s two biggest economies.

The agreement takes effect on March 19th of 2019 and the content requirement would be subject to current formulas for calculation, the economy ministry said in a statement. The statement did not provide details on the formula.

Mexico has been seeking to diversify trading partners since U.S. President Donald Trump warned of the possible death of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that has underpinned Mexico’s foreign trade for a quarter-century.

The economy ministry said Mexico racked up a trade surplus in the auto sector with Brazil worth $868 million last year, three times the total recorded in 2017.

The automotive industry in Brazil is protected by subsidies and import taxes. Antonio Megale, president of automotive sector trade group Anfavea, told newspaper O Estado de S. Paulo he would have preferred to delay the free trade agreement by three years.

Announcing new investments in Brazil on the 19th , Carlos Zarlenga, General Motors’ top executive for South America, said the Brazilian industry was competitive and benefited from its scale, but noted that taxes were so high that 50 percent of the automaker’s revenue in the country was spent on taxes.

Source: www.reuters.com

Photo owned by Magnusson Klemencic Associates

(Article in spanish)

El flujo de productos entre San Diego y Baja California alcanzó 1,400 millones de dólares en el 2018 .

El líder del eje económico del CDT, Miguel Velasco Bustamante, explicó que de acuerdo con el Colegio de la Frontera Norte entre ambos lados de la frontera hay un intenso flujo de mercancías que tan sólo durante el 2018 alcanzó la cifra de 1,400 millones de dólares de productos.

El empresario comentó que el consejo trabaja en un reporte con la actualización de las necesidades de la proveeduría y las oportunidades de negocio que hay en la zona metropolitana y San Diego; así como dar impulso a la mejora regulatoria e incentivos a la productividad y a la inversión.

Para ello, el año pasado el organismo empresarial inició con un diagnóstico de las necesidades de la proveeduría de la región, con la intención de conocer las vocaciones de la ciudad y las áreas de oportunidad de cada uno de los sectores de la industria.

Detalló que el estudio es realizado con fondos del Fideicomiso Empresarial de Baja California y se logró la actualización de necesidades de proveeduría, en coordinación con la Cámara Nacional de la Industria de la Transformación (Canacintra) en Tijuana, con quien se trabajó en la promulgación de la Ley de Fomento a la Proveeduría local.

Se hicieron análisis de cada uno de los sectores en particular con en el electrónico y se coordinaron trabajos para conocer demandas de las grandes empresas tractoras.

“Se encontró que en la industria electrónica hay una serie de componentes, productos y servicios que tienen que importarse y que hay capacidades instaladas localmente para que haya más proveeduría”, expresó.

Velasco Bustamante detalló que la idea del CDT es contribuir con información para que el ecosistema pueda obtener apoyos de los gobiernos municipal, estatal y federal.

“Para este año la idea es actualizar las necesidades de proveeduría y las oportunidades de negocios; se han contratado servicios de un despacho internacional para ser más precisos y saber cuáles son las oportunidades de negocios en cada uno de los sectores”, declaró.

Por su parte Aarón Victorio Escalante, director del CDT, señaló que dentro del eje económico se trabajó en diversos proyectos durante el 2018 que se han ido consolidando con la finalidad de promover la proveeduría local.

Durante la presentación del estudio de Cadenas Productivas y Contenido Nacional de la Industria Maquiladora del municipio de Tijuana, destacó que a través de ese análisis se encontró que en los diversos sectores de la industria hay un potencial importante de crecimiento.

De acuerdo con Canacintra, las maquiladoras en el estado compran tan sólo 2% de insumos locales, y con la iniciativa de fomento a la proveeduría estatal se fijaron como meta incrementar ese consumo hasta 30%, representando 293 millones de dólares anuales para beneficio de la región, por cada punto porcentual que se aumente.

Article originally published by Gabriela Martínez, source: www.eleconomista.com.mx

Querétaro tiene 5 parques industriales en construcción

En la actualidad operan en el estado 45 parques industriales que albergan más de 1,600 empresas.

 

En el estado de Querétaro existen en la actualidad cinco parques industriales que están en construcción para este 2019, informó Marco Antonio del Prete Tercero, secretario de Desarrollos Sustentable de la entidad.

El funcionario explicó que se trata de dos parques industriales en el municipio de Pedro Escobedo, dos más en San Juan del Río y otro más en la ciudad de Querétaro, con una extensión total de hasta 700 hectáreas.

Del Prete Tercero detalló que en la actualidad operan en la entidad del Bajío 45 parques industriales que albergan más de 1,600 empresas de diferentes industrias, mismas que generan más del 40% del PIB estatal.

Aunque no dio a conocer el monto de dichas inversiones, el representante del gobierno adelantó que se trata de micro-parques y complejos industriales más grandes, además de la ampliación de otros ya existentes en municipios como San Juan del Río.

 

Article orginally published by Fernando Navarrete, source: https://centrourbano.com/
Among states, Baja California Sur was No. 1 with 269% growth.

Data from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi) shows that Mexico’s overall manufacturing growth between 2013 and 2018 was 17.9% – 1.4% higher than that achieved in the previous six years. The increase in the value of nationwide production was largely driven by the Bajío, a region made up of Guanajuato, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro and Aguascalientes.

Western Mexico – Jalisco, Michoacán, Nayarit and Colima – achieved the second highest growth in the period, with the value of its production up 25.3%.

The northern border region – taking in all six states that abut the United States – was next with 21.5% growth, followed by the central-north region with 15.3% growth and central Mexico, which saw a 9.8% increase.

Among individual states, Baja California Sur was a clear-cut winner. The state saw whopping growth of 269% between 2013 and 2018.

San Luis Potosí was in second place with the value of its output increasing by 73.7%, while Aguascalientes recorded 70.4% growth to finish third.

Mexico’s south and southeast was the only region that saw a decline — a 17.3% decrease. Manufacturing shrunk by 42% in Oaxaca, 16% in Veracruz, 11.8% in Guerrero and 0.8% in Tabasco.

Output in Tamaulipas, Hidalgo, Mexico City, Sonora and Durango also declined in the six-year period.

 

The total value of manufacturing in Mexico last year was just over 7.3 trillion pesos (US $380.1 billion), with 32% of that figure coming from the northern border region. Factories in central Mexico generated 28.2% of the wealth and the Bajío region contributed 21.5%.

In 2013, the same three regions, in the same order, were also the leading contributors to the value of Mexico’s overall manufacturing output.

But 2018 figures show that only the Bajío increased its participation in percentage terms, contributing 4.3% more than it did in the first full year of Enrique Peña Nieto’s presidency.

The newspaper El Economista said that policies introduced by governments in Guanajuato, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro and Aguascalientes have been the driving force behind the Bajío region’s strong performance in manufacturing, pointing out that the states entered into commercial alliances that helped them to attract domestic and foreign investment in sectors such as automotive and electronics.

In November, the governors of the four states also agreed to work together to create a new manufacturing region to be known as the Central Bajío Corridor.

Long-term cooperation between the states will also extend to security, tourism, transport and social development, among other areas.

 

The Bajío region state that generates the most manufacturing wealth is Guanajuato.

Since 2010, it has ranked fourth every year for the value of its economic output behind México state, Nuevo León and Coahuila, which have maintained their spots, in that order, as Mexico’s top three manufacturing powerhouses for almost a decade.

San Luis Potosí and Querétaro are now also in the top 10 manufacturing states, taking the places of Sonora and Tamaulipas, which featured in the 2013 list.

The 7.3 trillion pesos generated by manufacturing last year accounted for 16.1% of gross domestic product (GDP), making the sector the most important of Mexico’s economy.

Production of cars and pickup trucks was the most profitable sub-sector of the manufacturing industry last year, generating 16.2% of all wealth followed by oil refining, which contributed 4.1%.

The production of buses and trucks was the third most profitable sub-sector, making a 4% contribution to the industry’s value.

Between 2013 and 2018, the value of parts manufactured for vehicle transmission systems increased by 101.7%, making it the best performing sub-sector in terms of growth, followed by beer production, which surged 73.5% and car and pickup truck production which grew by 68.1%.

Petroleum refining and the production of pharmaceuticals and tortillas were among the manufacturing sub-sectors whose contribution to total manufacturing value fell while Peña Nieto was in power.

Article originally published by Rodrigo A. Rosales on Wednesday, February 20, 2019 Source: mexiconewsdaily
Artículo publicado por Yolanda Morales on February 14th, 2019

 

México, noveno destino de inversión productiva a nivel mundial: PwC

México se ubica como el noveno destino más atractivo de inversión productiva mundial de acuerdo con CEO’s de las principales empresas multinacionales encuestados por PwC.

Con este resultado, se coloca junto con India y Brasil, como los únicos emergentes entre los 10 países más importantes para las expectativas de crecimiento de empresas multinacionales.

Al interior de la encuesta mundial de PwC número 22 de los CEO globales, edición México, se observa que el país escaló cuatro posiciones en 12 meses, desde el lugar número 13 que ocupó el año anterior.

Este avance es resultado del optimismo que despertó en los directivos el pacto sellado entre México, Estados Unidos y Canadá para renovar los intercambios entre los tres países, explica el Socio Director de PwC México, Mauricio Hurtado de Mendoza.

“El acuerdo comercial pactado tras más de un año de negociaciones fue determinante para el ánimo de los directivos. Cierto es que falta la ratificación legislativa, pero el acuerdo tranquilizó a los mercados y reubicó a México como destino interesante para invertir”.

Entrevistado por El Economista, matiza que la ubicación geográfica y proximidad con Estados Unidos, se mantiene como el punto de atención para los capitales productivos. Pero reconoce que el año pasado en particular, la desaceleración de otros países como Rusia, Hong Kong y Japón, también fue un facilitador para el retorno de México a la mira de los inversionistas.

Al interior de la encuesta, en el capítulo de México, divulgado hoy, identifican antes de México para las perspectivas de crecimiento de sus organizaciones a Estados Unidos; China; Alemania; India; Reino Unido, Brasil, Francia y Austria.

Estado de derecho e inseguridad, límites

El Socio Director de PwC México, admitió que los factores que limitan la posibilidad de una mejor posición de México en el radar de inversiones productivas son la corrupción, la debilidad del estado de derecho y la inseguridad.

La inseguridad es un tema de preocupación en todos los países, consignó Hurtado de Mendoza. Pero en el caso de México es uno de los grandes temas pendientes que ayudarían a dar certidumbre a continuar viéndolo como destino más redituable.

En la encuesta, que recoge la impresión de más de 1,387 CEO’s de 91 países, encontraron a la cabeza de de la preocupación sobre México a la Sobreregulación, la incertidumbre política, y los conflictos comerciales. Cada uno de estos temas, concentraron 35% de las respuestas.

El segundo foco de preocupación para los directivos, en México, son los ciberataques, que fueron identificados por 34% de ellos.

La encuesta de los CEO´s de PwC tiene una periodicidad anual, y se divulga a nivel mundial en el primer día de trabajos del Foro de Davos, a mediados de enero. La edición para México, fue lanzada un mes después, el 14 de febrero.

Las respuestas fueron recogidas entre el 4 de septiembre y 23 de octubre del año pasado. Lo que significa que incorpora la impresión que causó en los CEO´s, el triunfo de Andrés Manuel López Obrador en las elecciones presidenciales, el arranque del periodo de transición y la conclusión favorable que originó el acuerdo comercial con Estados Unidos.

Para consultar el artículo original: https://bit.ly/2GOYkXp

By Bianca Wright, originally published on February 11, 2019.

Easy movement across the border to and from San Diego is key to Tijuana’s tech outsourcing attractiveness.

Situated just 18 miles from San Diego across one of the busiest land borders in the world, Tijuana has long been building its reputation as an attractive outsourcing destination. Almost 2.1 million people live in Mexico’s sixth-largest city, many of whom are U.S citizens. Many more cross the border daily for work and collaboration between the two cities has been core to transnational development. This easy movement is one of the key drivers for tech growth in the city and broader region.

Lonnie McRorey, Co-Founder and CTO of Framework Science, believes that the outlook for the tech sector in Tijuana is one of exponential growth – unless the current U.S administration makes it more difficult for US citizens to live in Tijuana and for Tijuanans to go to work in San Diego every day. “Border politics is a double-edged sword in my opinion,” McRorey says.

Retaining a Transnational Spirit

Mexico-US relations have been under pressure as continued rhetoric from the Tump administration has focused on the building of a border wall, to be paid for by Mexico – something the Mexican government has consistently reiterated it will not do. Opponents have challenged the President’s assertions.

Following his State of the Union address on February 5, El Paso, Texas mayor Dee Margo, a Republican, wrote in a column for USA Today: “We in El Paso, Texas, are a community that transcends the border. While some are concerned about our proximity to Mexico, we choose to celebrate it. While others embrace building a wall, we remind them a fence already exists.”

Similarly Andrea Guerrero, executive director of the community group Alliance San Diego, told the Guardian in December 2018 that “Tijuana and San Diego are one community, with one heart.” This transnational spirit remains strong in places along the border.

Despite this uncertainty, Tijuana remains poised for growth in the tech sector. Adriana Eguia Alaniz, Vice President of New Business at Vesta Industrial Real Estate, agrees, describing Tijauna’s tech developments as “a growing sector with a lot of potential for success.” Eguia is the former CEO of the Tijuana Economic Development Corporation and former Executive Director of the Cali Baja Bi-National Mega-Region.

More than 15 Los Angeles and San Diego start-ups have joined Framework Science as a result of the binational network. “It’s amazing how quickly San Francisco companies can get down to San Diego and cross the border to take an Uber to their site operations. Tijuana is basically South South San Diego,” McRorey says.

Sounding the Call for Tijuana Investment

Known initially for manufacturing and now for IT companies outsourcing their call center operations there, there are now a growing number of companies in Tijuana that are focusing on coding. Initiatives to draw companies in software, robotics and AI have sprung up, and, according to the San Diego Regional EDC, the rise of the innovation cluster and creation of incubators and new co-working spaces such as BitCenter and MindHub “foster the entrepreneurial spirit of locals.”

High-tech companies are now looking to Tijuana as an attractive option. “Gaming companies, high-tech medical device companies and so on, are now based in Tijuana and are looking to grow in this city with a lot of potential,” says Eguia.

However, Tijuana needs to ensure that its benefits are visible to the world. “There’s more to be done regarding positioning. People don’t know all the things that can be done here. Even though talent is available, companies are also bringing people from the South of Mexico that sometimes makes for a slower recruitment process. There’s no tech visa for Mexico, but the legislative process is running for Mexico to give the news for 2019,” says Eguia.

McRorey adds: “Mexico also boasts the highest numbers of STEM graduates across the American continent! Tijuana’s culture is binational by default, making it a hot spot for investments. Right now the real estate business and construction is booming.”

He explains that Tijuana is poised to be at the epicenter of transitional change as prime-country-city for cost-effective design/manufacturing and digital enterprise development outsourcing. “US companies are eyeing Mexico because of NAFTA and what it means for IP rights, and for the extreme proximity to the U.S,” he says, adding that Tijuana’s bi-cultural workforce makes it preferable to countries in Asia, for example.

The Need for Trusted Partners

He adds that Tijuana is primed for all types of outsourcing needs, from assembly and manufacturing to full product R&D. “Talent is drawn from Mexicali, Ensenada and Tecate thus the wide geographical dispersion makes it the ideal city for this type of boom in the next 10 years,” McRorey says. Mexico’s president’s agenda of lowering taxes and gasoline costs across the border with the US greatly incentivizes investments and business operational outsourcing opportunities.

Both agree that capitalizing on Tijuana’s attractiveness requires local knowledge and a good partner. “You need a trusted partner on the ground that can navigate business infrastructure and people operations. It is best to move to Tijuana for a few weeks or months to build a network,” McRorey says.

Eguia adds that you will need to be helped by an ecosystem expert or you can get lost to companies that may be not quality oriented. “There is also a lack of information if searching on the internet,” she cautions.

 

Original article: https://www.nearshoreamericas.com/tijuana-exponential-growth/