Mexico climbed six places in Kearney’s 2026 Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index (FDICI), consolidating its position as one of the two fastest-growing markets in the world ranking.
Mexico rose from 25th to 19th in the index released on Thursday, while its two North American trade partners — the United States and Canada — came in first and second, respectively.
Gerardo Rocha, managing partner of Kearney México, said among the reasons Mexico gained ground in this year’s rankings is because it is part of a large regional platform alongside the U.S. and Canada.
Rocha said the improvement can also be attributed to “a favorable inertia driven by the reconfiguration of supply chains” — a trend commonly known as nearshoring — “and the optimism of senior business leaders.”
Rounding out the top five, Japan moved up from fourth to third, China leap-frogged from sixth to fourth, while Germany remained in fifth place.
The FDICI conducted by Kearney — a leading global management consulting firm — is an annual survey of global business executives that ranks markets most likely to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) over the next three years.
According to PR Newswire, the 2026 Index “reflects a global investment environment shaped by intensifying geopolitical tensions, expanding industrial policy and accelerating technological competition.”
Mexico’s advantages and challenges
From 2020 through 2023, Mexico was not included in the FDICI — which only ranks the Top 25 nations — but it returned in 2024 as the 21st most attractive economy for FDI. It slipped to No. 25 in last year’s ranking.
Its six-spot leap in this year’s index — driven by a record FDI haul of $40.87 billion last year — was only exceeded by Singapore, which climbed seven spots from 15th to 8th.
In the face of a prevailing global climate of uncertainty, Rocha said Mexico maintains competitive advantages over other nations, although certain challenges must be overcome to convert this confidence into reality.
Among the advantages, Mexico stands out for its infrastructure with regard to the supply of energy and water, and for a series of tax incentives included in President Claudia Sheinbaum’s economic initiative known as Plan México.
Mexico’s Manufacturing, Maquiladora and Export Service Industry program is also attractive to investors as it allows foreign manufacturers to temporarily import raw materials, machinery and components duty-free for production, provided the finished goods are exported.
The survey found that the most attractive sector for investment in Mexico is telecommunications, while aerospace and defense, transportation, primary goods, information technology, health and pharmaceuticals, heavy industry and financial services also found favor among those surveyed.
As for challenges, technological innovation is the greatest concern. Mexico was found to rank at the bottom of this indicator within the Top 25.
The FDICI found that technological and innovation capabilities are the most important factors influencing where companies choose to invest, surpassing traditional considerations such as regulatory reliability and domestic economic performance.
As such, Mexico must look to strengthen investment incentives and increase competitiveness, particularly through technological innovation.
Other priorities are the need to increase regulatory efficiency and provide greater legal certainty to property rights.
With reports from El Financiero, Rio Doce, Mexico Now and La Jornada
