Borderlands: Exports of Mexican-built cargo trucks fell in November
Borderlands is a weekly rundown of developments in the world of United States-Mexico cross-border trucking and trade. This week: Exports of Mexican-built cargo trucks fell in November; Rotor Clip opens global distribution center in Texas; Chinese automotive supplier completes $30M expansion in Mexico; and border officials seize $10M worth of narcotics in jalapeno paste.
Exports of Mexican-built cargo trucks fell in November
Exports of Mexican-built heavy-duty trucks fell 1% year over year (y/y) in November to 14,114, according to the latest data from Mexico’s National Association of Bus, Truck and Tractor Producers (ANPACT).
Members of ANPACT produced 17,848 units in November, a 2% y/y increase compared to the same month last year.
While exports recorded a slight decline in November, 2023 has been a good year overall for Mexico’s truck production and export industry, according to Miguel Elizalde, ANPACT’s president.
Elizalde said from January through November, ANPACT members produced 204,678 units, a 12.7% y/y expansion compared to the same period in 2022 and 1.3% y/y increase compared to 2019, which was a record year for the association.
“The figures tell us that the difficulties faced during the pandemic have been left behind thanks to the dynamism provided by the entire motor transport value chain,” Elizalde said during a recent video news conference.
During the first 11 months of 2023, ANPACT members exported a total of 163,180 trucks, a 9% y/y increase compared to 2022.
The U.S. received 96.1% of the trucks exported by Mexico. Canada was the second-largest buyer with 2.3%, followed by Colombia with 0.6%.
The 16 members of ANPACT in Mexico include Freightliner, Kenworth, Navistar, Hino, International, DINA, MAN SE, Mercedes-Benz, Isuzu, Scania, Shacman Trucks, Foton, Cummins, Detroit Diesel, Daimler Buses Mexico and Volkswagen Buses.
“If the trend continues in December, then 2023 will be positioned as the best year ever recorded for the heavy vehicle industry, a situation that fills us with pride as an industry and as a country, by producing commercial vehicles for the domestic and foreign markets that generate greater efficiency levels for transport companies, as well as greater road safety and better environmental protection with cleaner technologies,” Elizalde said. “The industry is ready to establish itself as the driving force of nearshoring, which will boost productive capacity and the export volume.”
Freightliner was the top truck producer and exporter in Mexico in November, producing 10,849 trucks and exporting 9,646 units, both 10% y/y increases compared to 2022.
International Trucks Inc. was the No. 2 producer and exporter, manufacturing 4,525 trucks in November, a 13.5% y/y decrease. The truck maker exported 3,947 units during the month, a 17% y/y decline.
Elizalde also recently announced that he will be stepping down from ANPACT at the end of December. He has served as the association’s president since 2012.
Rotor Clip opens global distribution center in Texas
Somerset, New Jersey-based Rotor Clip recently announced the opening of a logistics and distribution center in Fort Worth, Texas.
The 70,000-square-foot warehouse facility boosts the company’s storage capacity and order fulfillment capabilities, officials said.
“We’ll continue to invest in equipment and facilities to ensure the expanding global marketplace has access to the highest quality rings and springs in the world,” Craig Slass, co-president of Rotor Clip, said in a news release.
Founded in 1957, Rotor Clip manufactures retaining rings, wave springs and self-compensating hose clamps. The company serves all various industries, including automotive, aerospace, defense, energy and the medical sector.
Chinese automotive supplier completes $30M expansion in Mexico
China-based Tier 1 supplier Xinquan Automotive Trim recently finished construction of a second production facility in the state of Aguascalientes, generating 700 new direct jobs.
The $30 million investment included the construction of a 115,712-square-foot warehouse and manufacturing facility. Xinquan is a designer and manufacturer of automotive trim system parts and molds.
Xinquan built a 297,084-square-foot facility in Aguascalientes in 2021. The company will produce over 600,000 sets of door panels and center console units annually.
Border officials seize $10M worth of narcotics in jalapeno paste
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Otay Mesa, California recently discovered 349 packages containing narcotics hidden in a shipment of jalapeno paste.
On Dec. 13, CBP officers were inspecting a commercial tractor-trailer arriving from Mexico. The truck was carrying a load of Jalapeno paste.
Officers said they discovered a total of 349 suspicious packages from vats of the paste. The contents were tested and identified as 3,161 pounds of methamphetamine and 522.5 pounds of cocaine.
CBP officers seized the narcotics and commercial tractor-trailer and turned the driver over to Homeland Security Investigations.
More articles by Noi Mahoney
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