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#Mexican Investments in U s. Create Jobs, Taking over U s. Brands Mexico city-based Bimbo bought the U s. baked-goods operations of Weston Foods taking over 22 industrial bakeries and 4, 000 distribution routes. A new kind of Mexican immigrant is making it big in the USA: huge Mexican corporations that are snapping up U s. brand names, opening U s. factories and investing millions of pesos north of the border. From Thomas English muffins to Borden milk, Saks Fifth avenue department stores to The New york times newspaper, Mexican investors have taken advantage of low interest rates and depressed prices during the economic downturn to expand their holdings in el norte. oethese companies show were not just a bunch of uneducated migrants, says Jorge Smeke, a business professor at Iberoamerican University in Mexico city. oeclearly there are Mexican investments (in the USA) that are creating jobs. In some cases Mexican companies have taken over U s. brands. Others have expanded their U s. operations or increased their investments in U s. firms. A slice of the pie Newcomers include Grupo Lala, Mexicos largest dairy company, based in GÃ mez Palacios in the northern state of Durango. Lala bought a yogurt plant in Omaha in 2007. In 2009, it purchased Dallas-based National Dairy Holdings, which controls the Borden brand and 18 regional dairies selling milk under the names Flav-O-Rich, Dairy Fresh, Velda Farms, Sintons, Cream O Weber, Goldenrod and others. Grupo Bimbo, Latin americas largest baked-goods company has expanded also its U s. operations. In 2009, Mexico city-based Bimbo bought the U s. baked-goods operations of Weston Foods for $2. 4 billion, taking over 22 industrial bakeries and 4, 000 distribution routes. In all the Mexican company has 35 bakeries in the USA turning out national brands such as Entenmanns pastries, Boboli pizza crusts and Thomas English muffins to regional brands such as Brownberry bread and Mrs. Bairds snack cakes. About 43%of Bimbos 2009 sales were in the USA. New investment in the USA by Mexican companies rose from $3. 6 billion in 2005 to nearly $8 billion in 2008 according to the latest statistics from the U s. Department of commerce. Mexican companies employ about 59,000 people in the USA. Like Bimbo and Lala, many of the Mexican companies operate regional subsidiaries, a structure that obscures their immense size. Cemex, the worlds third-largest cement maker, markets its products as Victor, Dixie, Richmortar and other names depending on the U s. state. oemany people dont even realize (the companies) are Mexican, says Teresa Gutierrez-Haces, an economist at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Cemex became a giant in 2008 after acquiring Australias Rinker Group for $14 billion. The deal included 415 U s. plants that produce concrete gravel, blocks and other building materials. The company says it employs about 18,000 people in the USA. The Mexican investment in the USA is good news for both countries, says Lorraine Eden, a professor of management at Texas A&m University. The USA benefits with jobs and tax income, while the stream of foreign profits strengthens Mexicos economy. oein the end, it improves growth and competitiveness back home in Mexico, Eden says. oeits a two-way flow, and its good for both of us. Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim has expanded his empire into the USA. In March Forbes magazine ranked him the worlds richest person, beating out Americans Bill gates and Warren Buffett with a net worth of $53. 5 billion. In 2008, Slim bought a 6. 9%share in The New york times Co, . making him the largest shareholder outside the Ochs-Sulzberger family. He increased his stake in the Saks Fifth avenue department stores from 10.9%to 18%.%Tuesday, Slim entered the Manhattan real estate market, buying an office building on Fifth avenue for $140 million. Amrica MÃ vil, a cellphone company controlled by Slim, has increased its U s. subscribers 26%since 2008 from 11 million to 15 million. The company sells prepaid cellphone service under the names Tracfone, Straight Talk and Net10. Adding foreign flavor Some Mexican companies have benefited from the spread of Hispanic culture in the USA. Gruma, which claims to be the worlds largest maker of tortillas, wraps and corn flour, makes 47%of its sales in the USA and Europe, thanks to the growing popularity of Mexican food. The company has 25 bakeries and flour mills in Texas, California, Indiana and Kentucky. It is a major supplier to restaurants and fast-food chains. The Gonzã¡lez Barrera family, which controls Gruma, owns one of Mexicos largest banks, Banorte, which bought Texas-based Inter National bank in 2009. oetheyre not going to the USA) just to sell to Latinos anymore, says Juan Enciso, an economics professor with the Institute for Advanced and Continuing Studies in Monterrey. Via USA Today Share Thissubscribedel. icio. usfacebookredditstumbleupontechnorati S

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