By Eric Porras*
In Mexico, competing costs more. Despite advances in technology, service and planning, logistics costs continue to be a structural obstacle that limits the country’s competitiveness compared to more advanced economies. The most recent edition of National Study of Logistics Indicatorsprepared by #SoyLogístico Asociación, LDM – Empowering Your Supply Chain and EGADE Business School of the Tecnológico de Monterrey, confirms that the total logistics cost as a proportion of sales continues well above international standards. This gap not only reduces margins and efficiency, but also slows the country’s ability to fully capitalize on the nearshoring and consolidate as a hub strategic manufacturing and trade.
Today, most companies recognize that logistics has ceased to be an operational function and has become a strategic pillar of their performance. It is the engine that sustains the service levels demanded by the current market. To stay competitive, companies must align processes, invest in technology and optimize their logistics networks with the aim of containing transportation costs, inventories, storage and order processing. Those that manage to do so reduce inefficiencies, better allocate their resources and enhance the customer experience, directly impacting their profitability. At the same time, they strengthen their resilience in the face of uncertain economic cycles and increasing pressures on their global supply chains.
However, these chains operate in a particularly complex national environment, where various factors limit their ability to achieve efficiency levels comparable to leading economies. He National Study of Logistics Indicators shows that, on average, Mexican companies allocate around 17% of their sales to logistics costs, almost double what is observed in advanced economies such as the United States, Japan or Germany. In a context of global competition, high volatility and increasing productivity demands, this gap represents a major structural challenge.
Even so, the study also reveals encouraging signs: in the most relevant industrial sectors, companies report significant improvements in service levels, greater use of technology to strengthen demand planning and more sophisticated management of their supply networks. These advances show that, even within a complex environment, there are clear margins to improve logistics performance.
Read more: Logistics sector is optimistic about the current economic environment between Mexico and the US
Why is logistics in Mexico still so expensive?
Although Mexico faces challenges inherent to its geography and the extent of its territory—factors that, in themselves, increase logistical complexity—one of the triggers for the high cost is the insufficiency and, in many cases, the saturation of the infrastructure in the country’s main corridors. Although in recent years there have been advances in the road, rail and port network, these are insufficient in the face of the accelerated growth in logistics demand. Relevant challenges persist related to insecurity, congestion and deterioration of infrastructure, as well as customs processes that are still not very agile and limitations in multimodal connectivity. All of this hinders the efficient flow of goods, especially between the central and southern regions of the country and the North American market, the main destination for Mexican exports.
Other elements that put pressure on costs include the limited supply of high-quality logistics services, poorly digitized operational processes, insufficient coordination between supply chain actors and high inventory levels used as a protection mechanism against recent disruptions. Added to this is a relevant finding of the study: the high turnover of logistics personnel. This dynamic forces companies to continually invest in training, retention and recruitment, affecting operational stability and increasing indirect costs. Together, these conditions create an environment in which achieving efficiencies comparable to those of leading economies is particularly challenging.
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What would have to happen to close the gap?
To compete on a global scale, Mexico needs to accelerate its logistics transformation. This involves increasing investment in infrastructure and security in key corridors, as well as promoting logistics digitalization, particularly in visibility, planning and process automation. Likewise, it is essential to develop strategies to attract, train and retain specialized talent, along with public policies that reduce systemic costs and facilitate logistics integration between regions and industries.
In short, the high logistics cost in Mexico is not only a worrying figure, but a direct brake on the competitiveness and sustained growth of companies. Reducing it requires a clearer strategic vision from the private sector, but also decisive participation from the public sector to close historical structural gaps. Modern infrastructure, greater transport security, customs facilitation and policies that encourage digitalization should not be understood as simple complements, but rather as enabling conditions so that logistics efficiency stops being an exception and becomes the norm.
If Mexico aspires to compete head-to-head with more advanced economies, companies and the government must recognize that logistics is not an inevitable cost, but rather an engine of national competitiveness. Only through a shared agenda – where investment, technology and clear rules work in the same direction – will it be possible to reduce the logistical costs that today limit the country’s true potential.
About the author:
*Eric Porras is national director of MBA programs at EGADE Business School and member of the Board of Directors of the Soy Logístico Association.
The opinions expressed are solely the responsibility of their authors and are completely independent of the position and editorial line of Forbes Mexico.
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