Mercado Libre to almost triple investment in Mexico to US$1.1 billion this year

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Argentina’s e-commerce firm Mercado Libre said on Tuesday it would invest US$1.1 billion to expand its warehouse space and services in Mexico this year, spurred on by a pandemic-driven boom in online shopping.

The figure is nearly triple the US$420 million Mercado Libre spent last year in Mexico, a rapidly growing market where it is battling to stay ahead of global giant Amazon.com and other rivals.

The investment will help Mercado Libre double its warehouse space and boost fintech services such as consumer credit. The company said in a statement adding that it will create more than 4,700 jobs.

In the fourth quarter of 2020, Mexico exceeded Mercado Libre’s home market of Argentina in terms of items sold. The company has steadily ramped up its Mexico delivery network, recently opening a fourth distribution center, a 60,000-square-meter site in the northern state of Nuevo Leon.

By the end of last year, Mercado Libre operated 210,000 square meters (2,260,421 square feet) of warehouse space, mostly on the outskirts of Mexico’s populous capital.

Source: Reuters