The Institute for Economic Research (IIEc) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment (VCC), a joint center of the Columbia Law School and the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York, are releasing the results of their fifth survey of Mexican multinationals today. The survey, conducted during 2013, is part of a long-term study of the rapid global expansion of multinational enterprises (MNEs) from emerging markets. The present report focuses on data for the year 2012.
In 2012 the 20 largest Mexican MNEs had foreign assets of US$ 133 billion (Table 1), foreign revenue of US$ 92 billion, and 275,698 foreign employees (Annex I, Table 1). The two largest companies (América Móvil and CEMEX) together controlled US$ 86 billion, constituting 65% of total foreign assets of the MNEs on the list. The largest four MNEs (including Grupo México and Grupo FEMSA) held US$ 108 billion, representing 81% of the total. In terms of the number of companies, the food and beverage industry leads the list with five firms, followed by the non-metallic minerals industry (three) and diversified companies (three).
Only two companies are not listed on a stock market: PEMEX, an oil company wholly owned by the Mexican State, and XIGNUX, a family-controlled conglomerate.
The 20 MNEs have 325 subsidiaries overseas. Since the 1990s, the highest concentration of subsidiaries has been in Latin America, followed by North America, primarily the United States, and then closely by Western Europe. Asia is in fourth place. None of the ranked firms are present in sub-Saharan Africa.