Mexico’s monthly manufacturing production volumes fell by 1.8% in January 2026, marking the second consecutive monthly decrease and the most pronounced since July 2015, the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI) reported on Tuesday.
The decrease was coupled with weak employment and fewer hours worked in the manufacturing industry, INEGI reported in its Monthly Survey of the Manufacturing Industry (EMIM). The industrial sector on the whole (which spans mining, construction and manufacturing) was also down 1.1% month on month.
By segment, the sharpest annual decline was in the manufacture of textile inputs and finishings (-10.4%), with contractions observed across the apparel and leather goods industries, followed by transportation equipment, which fell by 9.5% and basic metal industries (-8.3%).
However, other segments reported increases, with oil and gas production increasing by 4% and the manufacture of related coal and petroleum products jumping 18.4% over January 2025.
Mexico’s manufacturing sector has shown signs of struggle, compounded by U.S. sectoral tariffs targeting key industries such as automotive and steel, which have cooled investor appetite and weighed on output.
Some stagnation has also been seen in employment in the sector. Though employment grew 0.2% month over month in January, employment in the manufacturing sector is down 2.5% compared to January 2025. The number of hours worked in January decreased by 0.4%, compared to the previous month, and fell by 2.6% year over year.
Meanwhile, the average real wages paid — adjusted for inflation using the National Consumer Price Index — in the manufacturing sector in January fell by 0.3% month on month but increased by 3.3% compared to January 2025.
The manufacturing sector, which contributes approximately 20% of Mexico’s GDP, had a mixed 2025. A third-quarter slump weighed on annual growth before a surge in export revenues drove GDP up by nearly 1% in the fourth quarter. This year, analysts expect Mexico’s economy to regain stability, with growth forecasts ranging between 1.4% and 1.8%.
With reports from La Jornada
