Publications

The Colombian automotive sector experienced a strong recovery in 2025 and has further accelerated its momentum in 2026. Growth has been driven by improved household consumption, the rise of utility vehicles, and the advancement of hybrid and electric technologies.

Mexico’s formal employment began 2026 with weak growth, affected by low investment and business closures, particularly among SMEs. Informality is rising, while services support job creation and regional and sectoral disparities persist.

Formal employment stagnated in June, closing Q2 with negative growth. This reflects weakness in key sectors, declining investment, and deteriorating expectations, all of which contribute to an adverse environment that could impede short-term labor market recovery.

In February, formal employment in Mexico slowed down due to uncertainty stemming from potential U.S. tariffs, negatively impacting business and consumer expectations. Nevertheless, real wages and the real wage bill continue to support consumption.

Mexico faces significant structural economic challenges, with informality standing out as one of the most complex to address. Although there have been efforts to understand and analyze informality from various perspectives, these efforts have little impact as they remain outside the debate and action of public policy.

The average real wages of formal workers in Mexico have shown notable growth, accompanied by a significant improvement in workers' purchasing power, especially in the lowest income deciles, which indicates progress towards lower wage inequality.

The formal job creation continues to show strength, with a year-on-year growth of 3.4% in September; in cumulative figures from January to September 757K new jobs have been created, the fourth-highest since 1998.