Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1540984
8 SMT007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2025 Is Mexico the Pulse of Electronics in the Americas? Last year, I attended SMTA Guadalajara, where I saw the results of the Mexican investment in elec- tronics manufacturing. The U.S. was still operating under the Biden administration, and while Mexi- can EMS companies had expanded capacity to sup- port EV manufacturing, the demand dropped signif- icantly. In my conversations at the show, the senti- ment was one of patience. They knew the EV busi- ness would likely come back. However, they didn't expect an overhaul of U.S. trade agreements and tariffs that would shift a more diversified portfolio in Mexico's direction. Now, with a new U.S. administration regulating its own tariff strategies, we might easily conclude N O L A N 'S N OT ES by Nolan J ohnson, I-C onne ct0 07 that Mexico operates in the shadows. Yet, Mexico almost always lands among the top 10 global pro- ducers. In electronics assembly, Mexico ranks in the top five. In other words, Mexico is a quiet economic powerhouse that plays an increasingly impor- tant role in the EMS sector, and chances are good you're either collaborating or competing with Mexi- can firms somewhere in your supply chain. Location plays a key role in Mexico's ongoing success. In addition to its proximity to the Pan- ama Canal, Mexico recently completed a compet- ing transportation corridor called the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (CIIT). Clau- dia Sheinbaum Pardo, president of Mexico, hailed