According to data from the National Council of Maquiladora Export Industries (CNIME) of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIC), maquila shipments have already reached a total of US$924 million at the end of November 2023.
The document also highlights that 81% of the products exported by maquiladora industries are concentrated in five sectors, the main ones being automotive parts and the clothing and textile sector with shares of 28 and 19%, respectively.
Next are food products with 16%; aluminum and its products with 11%; and to a lesser extent the category of plastics and its products with 7%.
In terms of shipping production destinations, MERCOSUR continues to be the main market absorbing 70% of exports, led by Brazil and Argentina with 55% and 13% respectively. To a lesser extent, the United States is at 7%; The Netherlands, 6%; Chile, 4%; Singapore, 3%; and Uruguay, 2%.
Similarly, the document states that 95% of maquiladora industries are concentrated in four points within the state. The first corresponds to the department of Alto Paraná with 50%, due to its proximity to the main shipping destination, Brazil.
Another location is Central and Capital, where 38% of all maquiladora industries are concentrated. Finally, the remaining 7% is located in the department of Amambay.
Market equilibrium
Imports of inputs for industrial transformation in the maquila regime totaled $458 million at the end of November, while exports exceeded $920 million, indicating a positive trade balance as supplies exceed imports by 102%.
Investments in the Maquila regime
As for the investments achieved in this mode, the report states that from January to November, the amount already totals 48.7 million USD, which represents an increase of 164% compared to the same period last year. In addition, to date, some 289 companies have an approved maquila program in Paraguay, of which 32 have been approved so far in 2023.
Job employed
In recent years, the growth of the maquiladora industry has caused an increase in jobs in the country.
In this sense, the Council’s report highlights that the number of directly employed persons already totals 25,693 workers, which is 9% more than what was registered in the second half of 2022. Of this total, 44% are occupied by women, while 56% are men.
The main areas where jobs associated with the maquiladora industry are registered correspond to automotive parts and clothing, each with 25%; intangible services, 10%; plastics and their products 8% and pharmaceutical products with 5%. Together, these sectors are responsible for more than 73% of job creation in the maquiladora industry.
Exceed $1,000 million
Carina Daher, president of the Chamber of Maquiladora Companies in Paraguay, emphasized that they estimate that by the end of this year it will exceed 1,050 million USD. This amount is higher than last year, which was 1,036 million USD.
“I am convinced that the maquila regime pioneered industrialization and that growth will also be exponential. We had more or less between 12 to 15% (growth) per year, with the perspective, the promotion that the president (Santiago Peña) is doing at the country level, the ministers, we estimate that we are going to increase by 20% next year,” Daher said when asked about expectations for the year 2024.
He added that in September, during the Maquila Expo held in Ciudad del Este, they received more than 16 foreign delegations that were interested in investing in the country under the maquila regime.
“In February-March we will return to that idea, they (foreign delegations) have taken the numbers, they are going to work on financial planning for competitiveness, if it is possible to operate from Paraguay so that we can export to different countries, so the estimate is also positive,” he concluded .