Mexico will begin opening auto factories starting May 18 as part of a plan released Wednesday that eases restrictions on coronaviruses and paves the way for U.S. auto giants. United States Increase production based on parts manufactured south of the border.
In a presentation, the government said on Monday that mining, construction and manufacturing of transportation equipment will be considered essential activities and that companies must implement strict protocols to protect their workers.
"We now have the light that tells us that we will come out of the tunnel," said President Andrés Manuel López Obrador with senior officials at a press conference at which the government presented its plans.
López Obrador stressed that the adoption of the measures would be voluntary. Some states can move faster than others when the auto industry reboots, although industry leaders want supply chains to reconnect as easily as possible.
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A government memo dated Wednesday, based on media reports, showed that state governments differed widely in their advice on how quickly activities would resume.
The U.S. and automakers have pressured Mexico to reopen factories serving the U.S. market, despite the growing challenge posed by the pandemic. Mexico recorded Tuesday 353 deaths from coronavirus, its deadliest day to date.
Mexico ships 80% of its exports to the United States and became its main trading partner last year, with bilateral trade worth more than $ 600 billion. Mexican auto production almost evaporated in April, down 99%.
As of Monday, Mexico will also allow municipalities that have not reported any cases of coronaviruses adjacent to others without infections to start lifting the coronavirus borders.
The government has declared that 269 municipalities, more than 10% of the national total, currently fall into this category.
Other more general economic and social activities will be relaunched step by step as part of a "traffic light" system to determine which regions of the country pose the lowest risk of epidemics, a declared the Minister of Economy Graciela Márquez.
The reopening of the North American auto industry is expected to be gradual, said Phil Annese, senior director of Pilot Freight Services, which moves auto parts for Ford.
The assembly plants "will start with a production rate of 25% to 40%, they will go as slowly as possible so as not to create problems in the supply chain," said Annese.
"If they obstruct this supply chain, this is more of a problem than anything they can have. Starting and stopping the lines is where that is. the cost comes in, "he added.
Mexico has studied other countries emerging from the lockout and believes that highly mechanized factories offer better conditions to control the risk of contagion, according to authorities.
López Obrador is trying to strike a balance between limiting economic damage and saving lives, but some lawmakers fear that Mexico will move too fast.
Among them, Benjamin Carrera, state legislator of the MORENA party of López Obrador in Chihuahua, which houses the northern industrial center of Ciudad Juárez.
He urged authorities not to allow manufacturers to open until June 1 in Ciudad Juárez, a border town with many maquiladoras, including auto parts manufacturers, and 146 people died from the coronavirus, including workers in factories.
"Juárez could not survive without factories. But right now, the life of a worker is much more important than a job," he said. "You can find a job. People's lives can no longer be."
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(Reporting by Dave Graham, Daina Beth Solomon, Anthony Esposito and Sharay Angulo in Mexico; Additional reporting by Nick Carey in Detroit; Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Nick Zieminski, Alistair Bell and Cynthia Osterman)
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