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Americans bought fewer Chinese imports in 2023, but Chinese exporters aren't necessarily hurting

Feb 8, 2024
We bought more imports from Mexico — and Chinese companies have been investing heavily there.
U.S. imports from China. were down more than 20% in 2023 compared to the previous year.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Mexico's massive new Tren Maya rail network raises environmental concerns

Jan 8, 2024
The cost of Mexico's 1,500-kilometer train line has ballooned to more than $28 billion.
An aerial view of the construction of part of the Tren Maya in Uman, Mexico, in August.
Rodrigo Oropeza/AFP via Getty Images

Keeping avocados (and other imports) fresh depends on the growing cold chain

Nov 16, 2023
Imported avocados make up roughly 90% of U.S. supply — most are from Mexico. Many of these fruits pass through the Port of Laredo, which has seen recent growth in cold chain infrastructure.
A forklift moves boxes of produce at the Mission Produce distribution facility in Laredo, Texas.
Elizabeth Trovall/Marketplace

Mexico turns back the clock on oil reforms, closes down foreign investment

May 24, 2022
The changes mean that Mexico can't drill for as much oil, just as the world is seeking alternate sources to Russian oil because of the war in Ukraine.
Aerial view of the Mexican oil company PEMEX oil complex in Azcapotzalco, on the outskirts of Mexico City.
PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

Shifting supply chains settle on Mexico

May 2, 2022
After a pandemic, trade war and rising wages, many manufacturers have been looking for other options outside of China.
With rising labor costs in China and the delay in receiving goods, some U.S. manufacturers are moving operations to Mexico. Above, workers at a truck parts factory in San Luis Potosí, Mexico, in May 2020.
Mauricio Palos/AFP va Getty Images

“Transmigrante” traffic may boost economy of Texas border town

Apr 6, 2021
Central Americans who make a living towing secondhand goods over the U.S.-Mexico border have a new crossing point at Presidio.
Since late March, the Presidio-Ojinaga port of entry has been open to transmigrantes, Central American drivers who travel through Mexico to their home countries to sell secondhand goods purchased in the United States.
Carlos Morales/Marfa Public Radio

With COVID surging, Mexico faces a shortage of oxygen to treat patients

Mar 4, 2021
As prices climb, the government says it is trying to crack down on unlawful trade in oxygen and related equipment.
In Guadalajara, Mexico, people line up to refill oxygen tanks for relatives with COVID-19.
Ulises Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images

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How could a revamped "bracero"program work?

Mar 1, 2021
The original program that imported Mexican labor ended in the 1960s due to rights violations. Biden and Lopez Obrador may discuss a similar plan.
The original bracero program imported Mexican workers for the agriculture and railroad industries, but it was terminated in the 1960s amid reports of human rights abuses. Biden and Lopez Obrador may discuss a similar plan.
David McNew/Getty Images

Mexican informal workers, hit hard by the pandemic, press for more government support

Dec 31, 2020
Many who make their living buying used goods in the United States and reselling them in Mexico face the challenge of border restrictions. In response, they’ve organized.
Nearly a year before the first cases were confirmed in Sonora, Benito Encinas' teenage son, Emilio, helps him unload merchandise largely purchased at Arizona yard sales.
Murphy Woodhouse/KJZZ

Mexico requires warning labels on some processed foods

Dec 4, 2020
The "junk food" labeling warns that some foods are high in sodium, or have excessive sugars.
Esteban Pérez works in the family business: a store in Mexico City that his grandfather started decades ago. He shows a soda can with the new warning labeling in Mexico.
Rodrigo Cervantes