On December 11, 2023, the Mexican Business Council for Foreign Trade, Investment and Technology (COMCE) and the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) co-hosted the 33rd Mexico-Japan Business Council Meeting in Mexico City, Mexico.

Around 120 Mexican and Japanese business leaders joined the meeting, which was co- chaired by Marcus Baur, Chair of the Mexico-Japan Economic Committee of COMCE, Amb. Sergio Ley-Lopez, Chair of the Asia Pacific Business Section of COMCE, and Shinya Katanozaka and Seiji Kuraishi, Chairs of the Japan-Mexico Economic Committee of Keidanren. In the meeting, we held lively discussions on bilateral important challenges, such as the promotion of trade and investment and industrial cooperation.

COMCE and Keidanren welcomed significant development of bilateral economic relations, which have mostly been achieved thanks to USMCA (the United States- Mexico-Canada Agreement) and the Mexico-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement. Both sides shared the recognition that Mexico, which is adjacent to a massive market, has become more important as a manufacturing base and as a hub of various services and logistics for Japanese companies. In addition, both sides recognized that Mexico and Japan are interested in expanding exports to each other. Furthermore, both sides reaffirmed that the rules of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans- Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) should be maintained to the very highest standards, while it is expected that the membership of CPTPP would be expanded. Moreover, both sides took note of the need for the agreement between Mexico and Japan on social security to be concluded immediately.

Considering the current complex and unforeseeable international situation and critical global issues facing us, including the realization of carbon neutrality, COMCE and Keidanren agreed that there is great potential for Mexico and Japan, which share the fundamental values such as freedom, democracy, basic human rights and the rule of law and which have received benefits from free trade, to further cooperate with each other in a wide range of areas, such as securing renewable energy, making supply chain resilient, promoting technology development, and extracting and processing mineral resources while maintaining and reinforcing a free and open international order.

Representing both countries' business communities, COMCE and Keidanren will continue to cooperate and collaborate to pave the way for further developing economic ties, thereby enlarging and deepening bilateral economic relations. Both parties will join forces to urge both governments to ensure business-friendly environments by enhancing safety, legal stability, and predictability of regulations and tax systems as well as building solid public infrastructure.

COMCE and Keidanren agreed to hold the 34th Mexico-Japan Business Council Meeting in Tokyo at an appropriate time.