Significant growth in auto sector export revenue helped Mexico record an 11.4% annual increase in export earnings in April, preliminary data shows.

Mexico’s exports were worth US $51.32 billion last month, national statistics agency INEGI reported Friday.

The newspaper El Economista said that the double-digit annual increase in export revenue was partially due to the fact that the Easter holiday period was in March this year while last year it fell in April. Mexico’s export earnings actually fell 2.6% in April compared to the previous month.

In April, auto sector export revenue surged 27.7% annually to $16.47 billion, or almost one-third of Mexico’s export earnings for the month. It was the largest year-over-year percentage-terms increase for auto sector exports since July last year.

Manufacturing exports, including auto exports, increased 12.9% to $45.97 billion, or almost 90% of the revenue total.

Non-auto manufacturing exports increased by 6.1% to just under $29.5 billion.

Revenue from the export of agricultural products also spiked in April, increasing 22.6% to $2.4 billion.

The only export categories for which revenue fell last month were oil and mining.

Oil revenue declined 17.5% to $2.11 billion, while mining earnings fell 3.5% to $830 million. The drop in oil export revenue coincided with a decline in national crude production to its lowest level since 1979.

Over 80% of Mexico’s export revenue comes from goods shipped to the United States. In 2023, Mexico was the largest exporter to the U.S., ousting China from that position.

Meanwhile, the value of Mexico’s imports increased 15.4% in April to $55.06 billion. Mexico was thus left with a trade deficit of $3.74 billion last month.

Imports of non-oil consumer goods surged 48.7% to $7.32 billion last month, while incoming shipments of capital goods — things such as machinery, tools and heavy equipment — increased 32.5% to $5.82 billion.

Imports of non-oil intermediate goods increased 14% to $38.71 billion, while oil imports including ready-to-use fuel fell 28.2% to $3.2 billion.

Mexico export revenue up more than 4% between January and April 

INEGI also reported that Mexico’s export earnings totaled $194.84 billion in the first four months of the year, a 4.1% increase compared to the same period of 2023.

Agricultural exports increased 10.7% in the period, while auto exports increased 10.4%.

The value of imports also increased between January and April, rising 4% to $201.29 billion.

Mexico thus recorded a trade deficit of $6.45 billion in the first four months of 2024.

With reports from El Economista, El Financiero and El Universal