Mexico's heavy-vehicle industry has posted sharp year-over-year declines in production, exports, and sales in February, signaling continued weakness across the country's truck manufacturing sector. The declines also offer a window into the broader North American freight cycle. Mexico is a key production hub for tractor-trailers used by U.S. fleets moving goods across the U.S.-Mexico border.
The downturn reflects weakening demand in Mexico's domestic trucking market, which has now posted more than a year of declines. Industry officials say the market has been in a prolonged contraction. The Mexican Association of Automotive Distributors (AMDA) coordinator of economic studies, Cristina Vázquez, said the market has accumulated 14 consecutive months of decline in the Mexican market in year-over-year terms.
Retail sales in February totaled 2,303 units, down 38.9% from a year earlier, while wholesale sales reached 1,836 units, a 27.3% decline compared with February 2025. For the first two months of 2026, the industry produced 13,767 heavy vehicles, representing a 50.5% decline from the same period last year, while exports totaled 12,925 units, down 42.6% year over year.
Industry officials say the downturn reflects weakening demand in Mexico's domestic trucking market, which has now posted more than a year of declines. The industry is facing a complex environment marked by adjustments in domestic demand and volatility in international markets. Strengthening competitiveness and recovering the internal market will be key for the sector going forward.
Manufacturing declines were widespread across the heavy truck sector. Of the 6,974 heavy vehicles produced in February, about 6,739 were cargo trucks and tractor-trailers, while 235 were passenger buses. Cargo vehicles account for the vast majority of Mexico's heavy-vehicle production, representing more than 97% of total output during the first two months of 2026.
Despite the sharp annual decline, exports rebounded slightly compared with January. Mexico exported 7,849 heavy vehicles in February, up more than 50% from January, according to data from Mexico's National Association of Bus, Truck and Tractor-Trailer Producers (Anpact). The U.S. accounted for 91.3% of shipments in February, followed by Canada (5.7%) and Colombia (2.6%).
The industry is navigating a volatile global environment that continues to affect demand. Rising imports of used trucks from the U.S. are undercutting new-vehicle sales in Mexico. Industry representatives warned that the imbalance between new and used truck purchases has become a major distortion in the market.
Rising fuel prices and geopolitical uncertainty also pose significant challenges for the industry. Guillermo Rosales, executive president of AMDA, said the heavy-vehicle sector is facing multiple economic headwinds, including tariff volatility and fuel price volatility. Despite the slowdown, Rosales said the industry expects demand to eventually stabilize as freight activity improves.
The outlook for the remainder of 2026 will depend heavily on freight demand, investment trends, and cross-border trade activity across North America. Industry leaders say the sector must adapt to changing market conditions to remain competitive.
The decline in Mexico's truck production and exports signals a broader weakness in the country's manufacturing sector.
