On this episode of THE MODERN MEXICO PODCAST, host Nathaniel Parish Flannery speaks to BLOOMBERG journalist Maya Averbuch about the problem of cargo truck hijacking in Mexico. Mexico is now considered to be the world's worst hotspot for cargo truck hijacking with over 100,000 violent in-transit robberies occurring over the last five years. These incidents have resulted in billions of dollars of losses over the last decade. Companies including GM, Coca-Cola, Wal-Mart, Amazon, and Philip Morris have all been affected. Cargo truck hijacking has become a major problem in Mexico. During President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, Mexico has a unique opportunity to encourage foreign investment in manufacturing. Many cities in Mexico are experiencing a boom in new industrial investment. But, foreign executives managing new facilities and operations in Mexico are discovering that Mexico presents some unique challenges when it comes to dealing with organized crime. According to the Global Organized Crime Index, Mexico is ranked as the world’s third worst country in terms of organized crime. For the last 20 years the generally accepted explanation has been that organized crime in Mexico typically tries to avoid messing with foreign manufacturing companies. For the most part, criminal groups have largely avoided kidnapping foreign executives or trying to extort companies operating factories. But, there is one type of crime that does directly impact foreign companies: cargo truck hijacking. Many remote stretches of highway in Mexico have become major hotspots for violent cargo robberies.

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