The operation, more than surprising, is a consequence of an alliance that began in 2020 between the companies with the initial idea that SMEs would have the opportunity for their logistics shipments to the United States to arrive in one day, taking advantage of all the infrastructure.

The first objective of UPS, the American ship shipping company, in purchasing Estafeta is to increase its logistics capacity in Mexico in the courier and parcel market, a rampant business that last year was worth US$2.5 billion, according to with the National Institute of Geography and Statistics of the Aztec country (Inegi). Additionally, the promise of the benefits that nearshoring will bring cannot wait.

Between 2013 and 2023 the sector grew 145%, which is equivalent to an average annual increase of 9.4%. Put in perspective, the increase is 6.5 times what the Mexican economy has grown in that period.

The operation, more than surprising, is a consequence of an alliance that began in 2020 between the companies with the initial idea that SMEs would have the opportunity for their shipments to the United States to arrive in one day, taking advantage of all the infrastructure.

"UPS had been studying the operation for a long time, they do things very calmly. Estafeta is a highly prestigious brand and its next steps were doubtful due to competition and internal issues, linked to its corporate governance. If the operation is approved and joining forces will have greater elements to compete with DHL and FedEx," commented the foreign trade consultant, Manuel Díaz.

From its perspective, UPS seeks to take advantage of a trade rule (the so-called 3,2,1 of the United States), which allows parcel companies to import up to US$800 per package without paying taxes.

As an example of this, he mentioned that you can bring a container of swimsuits from China to Mexico, put it in a controlled area and then take it out with a parcel company and cross them to the United States in individual labels and that does not cause taxes.

For the consultant, in the case of the benefits of UPS in Mexico it is the extensive infrastructure of Estafeta: six aircraft, 129 operation centers, four hubs (San Luis Potosí, Mexico City, Veracruz and the State of Mexico) and more than 6,000 terrestrial units of different sizes that allow them to reach remote places.

A BUSINESS WITHOUT BURDEN

Based on Inegi national accounts figures, last year the services produced by companies in subsector 492 corresponding to Messaging and Parceling had a value of 43,511 million current pesos, about US$ 2,500 million, considering the average exchange rate. of 2023.

The great driving force of the sector has been electronic commerce, which in the last five years had a compound annual growth of 37.5% that allowed it to reach a value of 658,300 million pesos (US$ 36,498 million) in 2023, as reported the Mexican Online Sales Association (AMVO) in its most recent Online Sales Study, presented last February.

Then, the disruptive factor was the Covid-19 pandemic, whose social distancing measures accelerated the growth of delivery and last mile services.

According to Inegi data, in 2020, while the Mexican economy contracted more than 8%, the GDP of the parcel sector grew 10.8%.

Later, in 2021, with the persistence of the virus and the lengthening of preventive measures, growth skyrocketed to 19.4%, while the economy rebounded at a rate of 6%.

In both 2022 and 2023, the sector's growth has been more moderate (8% and 5.4%, respectively), but continues to exceed the expansion of total GDP (3.7 and 3.2%).

In this context, it remains to be seen what will happen with the cargo service offered by Estafeta in Mexico, because to date it is a service limited to Mexican companies (in 2011 FedEx completed the purchase of the Mexican courier and parcel company MultiPack without cargo services will be included there).

Finally, another of the objectives of the new purchase announcement (which seeks to further support customers who are changing the manufacturing and distribution of goods closer to the US) is to face the challenges of current logistics competition, agreement with Manuel Díaz: green logistics, next day and cost of the operation.