Foreign Direct Investment of large Mexican companies in the United States

Abstract

This article analyzes the determinants of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of large Mexican companies in the United States (US). On the macroeconomic level, the level of Mexican FDI in the US fluctuates according to domestic and international economic conjunctures. The result is two "waves" of FDI with differentiated determinants: the first wave that began in the 1970s, and the second which began with the opening of the Mexican economy at the end of the 1980s and was affected by the 2008 global financial crisis. Due to the business practices and economic activities of Mexican firms, the factors which determine the spatial location of Mexican FDI in the US are the parent company's proximity to actual and potential markets and their participation in global production chains.