Mexico handled 9.53 million TEU in 2025, edging past its previous record even as North America’s container imports declined 2 percent over the same period. The composition of that trade is shifting: import volumes at Manzanillo are significantly outpacing exports, with Asian manufacturing inputs — machinery, electronics components, industrial equipment — entering Mexico for assembly rather than direct consumption. The question the industry is now asking is not whether nearshoring is generating container traffic. It is whether Mexico’s port infrastructure can absorb it.
Diego Rodriguez, Logistics and Industry Practice Head at Americas Market Intelligence, has his views on the matter. For Container Management, he said:
“Based on our research, at least 30 percent of TEU volumes at Pacific ports are tied to nearshoring. The clearest signal is in the import mix: it is Asian manufacturing inputs entering Mexico for assembly, not merely consumer goods.”
On Manzanillo’s congestion — where average vessel wait times have reached four days, with some ships anchored for up to 22 days — Rodriguez identifies the root cause as institutional rather than structural. “The constraint isn’t steel and concrete,” he tells CM. “It’s customs staffing, institutional trust, and coordination. You can’t build your way out of those problems.”
You are welcome to read the full coverage in Container Management’s April 2026 issue: Mexico’s Nearshoring Surge: Can the Ports Keep Up?
