BORDER COMMERCE
by Ana María Ruiz-Brown, Staff Writer - Translator.

Unemployment Rates Decrease in Juárez

Border cities such as Ciudad Juárez and Tijuana benefited by the Mexican economic crisis of 1995; their border economy bloomed because of the Mexican peso devaluation, according to "Nuestras Manos" El Diario's business supplement.

Ciudad Juárez occupied first place in the creation of new jobs in the state of Chihuahua up to the middle of 1997, according to El Diario. Ciudad Juárez had 70 percent of all the jobs created in the state.

Every day in Ciudad Juárez there are possibilities for new job opportunities, even for people coming from other Mexican states, several border economists agreed.

A main source for jobs in Juárez, if not the principal source, is the maquiladora industry, according to the El Paso Times. He expected the increase of maquilas in Juárez will continue to be stable, as it has been since 1995, according to Servando Sarabia, executive director of the Juárez maquiladora association.

Industry observers from the U.S. and México calculate a steady increase of 10 percent per year for the coming years. In fact, Ciudad Juárez is the Mexican city with the largest concentration of maquiladora workers, nearly 200,000 the El Paso Times reported.

For some maquilas, the proximity to El Paso results in an advantage. Industries can do business in México while staying in the U.S., according to the El Paso Times. Acer Inc., the Taiwanese computer giant, confirmed a $120 million investment in Juárez, and will keep its plant at El Paso, explained Ken Su, president of Acer. The company will hire about 1,000 workers for its new plant in Juárez.

Thomson Consumer Electronics, a television production center, also plans to expand in Juárez, employing about 200 or more workers, the El Paso Times reported.

Not only have maquilas boomed, but also real estate, environmental and construction businesses that advise companies looking to manufacture in México, commented Tom Cardenas, president of El Paso-based ECM International.

Since last year, new maquilas have developed in more organized ways, building their factories close to their prime source of resources, according to Norte. Nowadays, companies are looking to build not only maquilas but a manufacturing campus where they can operate with their suppliers close, explained Tom Cardénas, owner of the consulting firm ECM International.

In doing this, they reduce transportation costs and time to supply maquilas is faster. This new tendency could benefit not only border Mexican communities but American people too, said Lucinda Vargas, economist of the Federal Reserve in Dallas.

Industry is seeing problems as well with border transportation. After two years of the border opening of NAFTA, the entrance of Mexican heavy trucks to the United States is almost paralyzed, according to Manuel Sotelo, president of the Transportation Association in Juárez. Across-border transportation is subject to drastic overhauls from US officials, Sotelo complained.

US authorities argue that Mexican trucks violate the US safety standards to drive on Texas highways, but 80 percent of trucks in his organization fulfill the American requirements, Sotelo said.

Despite the problems, the amount of industrial cargo that crossed the international border increased 20 percent in 1997 compared with 1996, according to Norte.

Source: El Paso Times, El Diario, and Norte de Ciudad Juárez.


UNEMPLOYMENT RATES IN MEXICO
Annual Average 1997
Rate
México City 3.7
Matámoros 2.8
Nuevo Laredo 2.8
Ciudad Juárez 1.8
Tijuana 1.2

Source: El Diario

Commerce Authorities Warn of Scarce and Expensive Chicken

Juárez merchants and representatives of big supermarket chains warned of a possible price increase and shortage of chicken during March.

The Agricultural and Rural Development Secretariat (SAGAR), demanded a certification in imported birds.

Birds from the United States must be free of Influenza aviar virus and safe for human consumption, according to the Secretariat. Chicken meat is a very important food in the border population's diet, because is tasty and cheap, said a local merchant.

Source: Norte de Ciudad Juárez