Mexico rejected 
BYD's plans to build an electric vehicle factory there, as tariff talks with the US complicate the country's ability to do business with China.
BYD — which has been expanding overseas amid plateauing sales at home — had been expected to announce the plant's location soon, after narrowing it down to three options in early 2024. A northern site near the US border had been seen as the leading candidate.
The cost was estimated to be on par with BYD's new factory in Brazil, in which it has invested 5.5 billion reals ($1 billion). The automaker had planned to make the Mexico facility a major production site, employing around 10,000 people.
In May 2024, BYD held its first launch event for a new model outside China in Mexico City, making a splash to showcase its expansion in the country. But the Mexican government, under pressure from the US, had opted not to sell the company public land for the factory, or provide tax breaks or subsidies for the project.
With Trump set to remain in office until 2029 and Sheinbaum until 2030, the door appears closed to BYD for the time being.
BYD has been pulling market share from Japanese and Western automakers in Mexico as sticker prices of new vehicles have soared. Its sales there swelled nearly 100-fold last year to about 40,000 vehicles, including plug-in hybrids — rivaling Honda Motor and Suzuki Motor.
The goal is to double that figure this year. BYD is expanding its Mexican dealership network, and had one of its car carriers dock in the country for the first time, unloading a total of 5,000 vehicles at ports in the states of Sinaloa and Michoacan.
asia.nikkei.com/Business/Autom
BYD's plans to build an electric vehicle factory there, as tariff talks with the US complicate the country's ability to do business with China.
BYD — which has been expanding overseas amid plateauing sales at home — had been expected to announce the plant's location soon, after narrowing it down to three options in early 2024. A northern site near the US border had been seen as the leading candidate.
The cost was estimated to be on par with BYD's new factory in Brazil, in which it has invested 5.5 billion reals ($1 billion). The automaker had planned to make the Mexico facility a major production site, employing around 10,000 people.
In May 2024, BYD held its first launch event for a new model outside China in Mexico City, making a splash to showcase its expansion in the country. But the Mexican government, under pressure from the US, had opted not to sell the company public land for the factory, or provide tax breaks or subsidies for the project.
With Trump set to remain in office until 2029 and Sheinbaum until 2030, the door appears closed to BYD for the time being.
BYD has been pulling market share from Japanese and Western automakers in Mexico as sticker prices of new vehicles have soared. Its sales there swelled nearly 100-fold last year to about 40,000 vehicles, including plug-in hybrids — rivaling Honda Motor and Suzuki Motor.
The goal is to double that figure this year. BYD is expanding its Mexican dealership network, and had one of its car carriers dock in the country for the first time, unloading a total of 5,000 vehicles at ports in the states of Sinaloa and Michoacan.
asia.nikkei.com/Business/Autom