- Launch of Weetabix in Mexico, a joint effort of the Guadalajara and Mexico City teams
Now is a great time for Mexico. It may not have been named as one of the BRICs in 2001, but according to the World Bank’s ease of doing business rankings it’s far easier to do business here than in any of those nations. It has 110 million people, in an area the size of Western Europe. And it trades more than the rest of Latin America combined.
These are just some of the facts that I’ve learnt during the last four months, since I took up the position of Head of the UKTI team in Mexico.
I previously worked at the British High Commission in Singapore, on climate change and low carbon technologies. I covered all of South East Asia, including Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Malaysia, and had a lot of contact with businesses in areas like carbon trading, renewable energy and energy efficiency. So I was attracted to do more work at the sharp end with British business.
Our objectives in Mexico represent a challenge – but that’s what makes work here so interesting. Our team includes 30 specialist officers covering a wide variety of sectors: from financial services, advanced engineering, automotive, energy and environment, to fashion, food & drinks, education, healthcare and tourism.
Due to the breadth of Mexico’s business opportunities, we have a main office in Mexico City and teams in three other locations: Monterrey, Guadalajara and Tijuana. Altogether there are four committed offices, seeking to maximise the sector opportunities across the country.
Our main goal is to double bilateral trade to US$6.7 billion (£4.2bn) by 2015. This was a commitment made by our Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg and former Mexican President Felipe Calderon in March 2011. Analysis shows that we are currently on track to do that, with overall trade needing to increase by at least 10% per year to reach the goal.
Views of Mexico are changing. It used to be seen as a risky place with security problems, and admittedly that is still an issue in some parts of the country. But the perception is worse than the reality: the Government is taking action to tackle this, and a lot of British companies are doing well here. Among those on the ground already are British Petroleum, HSBC, Astra Zeneca, Unilever, Baker Tilly, Accesorize, GKN, and Diageo. Only this year we have helped various British companies to establish themselves in the market, such as Ben Sherman, Weetabix, Lee Cooper, Wedgwood, and Little Bridge, among others.
- David Cameron and former Mexican President Felipe Calderón, during his visit in June
We have also received high level attention from the UK. Prime Minister David Cameron was here in June, along with Lord Green and a high-level business delegation. And with a new Mexican government that took power earlier this month, expectations are high, especially because they intend to open up the labour market and follow through on energy reforms.
As I said, Mexico is the largest trading nation in Latin America - but at the moment, the UK only represents about 1% of Mexico’s imports! There are still challenges to overcome, but the economy is growing steadily, inflation and unemployment are low and its banks are well capitalised.
We see a tremendous amount of opportunity, and I look forward to sharing my progress (and thanks to Montgomery Gentry for the blog title!)
4 comments
Comment by Prana Alvarez posted on
Congratulations on your new Blog.
Comment by Prana Alvarez posted on
Congratulations on your new Blog.
Comment by Jacqueline Sanchez posted on
This is great John! Liked it very much, congratulations!
Comment by Jacqueline Sanchez posted on
This is great John! Liked it very much, congratulations!