Ay caramba! Singaporean firms eye Latin American expansion

Investments in Mexico reached $4b in 2013.

More and more Singaporean companies are eyeing Latin America for potential expansion, according to Second Minister for Home Affairs and Trade and Industry S Iswaran.

Iswaran recently concluded a trip to Mexico in order to represent Singapore at the 9th Pacific Alliance Summit in Mexico held on June 19 and 20.

“There is growing interest among Singapore companies to explore opportunities in Latin America. The Pacific Alliance accounts for a third of Latin America’s total population, and its combined GDP of US$3.1 trillion represents about 40% of the total regional GDP. There is excellent potential for greater collaboration between Singapore and the countries of the Pacific Alliance, in sectors such as energy and minerals, logistics, and urban infrastructure,” noted Iswaran in a statement.Here’s more from the release:

At the Summit, Minister S Iswaran drew attention to the high potential for more trade and investment between the countries of the Pacific Alliance and Southeast Asia. This is the first time that Singapore is participating in the Summit since it was admitted as an Observer state in February 2014.

The Pacific Alliance, a four-member Latin American economic grouping comprising Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Peru, was formally established in June 2012 to create an integrated market of 214 million people with a combined GDP of US$3.1 trillion.

Apart from Singapore, there are currently 31 other Observer States, including the United States, China, Japan, India, South Korea, as well as various Latin American and European countries.

The ninth Pacific Alliance Summit concluded with the four member states committing to deepen and widen the integration of their economies in terms of goods, services and people-to-people ties.

Trade between Singapore and Mexico has been increasing steadily over the years, reaching US$3.39 billion (S$4.24 billion) last year. Singapore is currently Mexico’s second-largest investor from the Asia-Pacific after Japan, with total direct investment amounting to some US$912 million (S$1.14 billion) as at end-2012.

Mexican companies looking to expand into Asia are also using Singapore as a base from which to manage their Asian interests and strategies.