October 2006

Mexico’s maquiladora industry expanded in July, with employment rising at a 6.6 percent annualized rate. Year-to-date, the industry has added roughly 45,500 new jobs.

Looking at performance by sector, job gains in July were widespread—the only exception being furniture, which declined 0.9 percent (Chart 1). Transportation and chemicals added the most jobs during the month; together these two sectors generated 77 percent of the total gain.

The maquiladora industry located on the Texas–Mexico border recorded annualized employment growth of 9.8 percent in July, with a year-to-date gain of 23,000 jobs. Ciudad Juárez and Reynosa were responsible for the July increases, adding 2,836 and 1,405 new jobs, respectively (Chart 2). Employment edged down slightly in Nuevo Laredo and Piedras Negras while remaining relatively flat in Ciudad Acuña.

The outlook for the maquiladora sector remains positive, despite an August dip in U.S. industrial production. Expectations are for the U.S. industrial sector to resume positive growth in the coming months, which should result in continued expansion of the maquiladora industry.

—Roberto Coronado and Jesus Cañas

Notes Data have been seasonally adjusted by the Dallas Fed. See Data Basics, "Seasonally Adjusting Data," for more information on seasonal adjustment. For a definition of maquiladora, see "Data Definitions."