SAN ANTONIO, Texas — A dynamic cross-border manufacturing corridor stretching from San Antonio through South Texas and deep into Northern Mexico is rapidly emerging as North America's next industrial superpower, according to regional economic experts and trade leaders speaking on a recent broadcast of KLRN TV’s Business of Business.
Hosted by former San Antonio Mayor and U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry Cisneros, the discussion highlighted how the region — dubbed the Texas-Mexico Automotive Supercluster — is leveraging geographical proximity, integrated supply chains, and massive capital investments to redefine international trade and advanced manufacturing.
Joining Cisneros for the panel were David Marquez, former executive director of economic and community development for Bexar County, and Jorge Torres, president and CEO of McAllen-based Interlink Trade Services.
While significant attention has focused on the explosive population growth between Austin and San Antonio, Cisneros emphasized that the true long-term economic engine extends south to the U.S.-Mexico border.
"This explosive corridor actually continues beyond San Antonio to the south — the region from San Antonio to the Rio Grande Valley, the borderlands, and then into Mexico is the next superpower," Cisneros said.
The region spans a series of rapidly growing economic centers:
Marquez, who authored the original blueprint for Bexar County's automotive cluster strategy following Toyota's arrival in San Antonio in 2003, explained that modern automotive assembly is driven strictly by logistics.
"Logistics drives the costs that you can most manage," Marquez noted. "And if you look at all of the components that make up a vehicle, something like 80 percent or more come within 400 miles of that final assembly facility."
When drawn from San Antonio, that 400-mile radius encompasses South Texas, the Rio Grande Valley, and key Northern Mexico manufacturing hubs like Monterrey and Saltillo. Today, Toyota's San Antonio plant hosts 25 on-site Tier-1 suppliers, a unique setup that feeds components directly into the main assembly line via overhead conveyors.
As Tier-1 suppliers expand, they require secondary (Tier-2) suppliers within close proximity to manage risk and transit times, driving investment across South Texas border communities.
In the Rio Grande Valley, the industrial footprint is shifting from traditional maquiladora operations to high-tech automotive component manufacturing.
Torres highlighted a major milestone for McAllen, which recently landed French automotive supplier Valeo.
"In McAllen, Texas, we just landed our first Tier-1 manufacturer, Valeo," Torres revealed. "They're going to open up a plant that's going to hire about 500 people. They're going to be making the new generation computer module brain for GM."
Torres noted that while trade policies and USMCA negotiations create temporary market uncertainties, Mexican exports continue to expand rapidly. Beyond automotive manufacturing, advanced trade along the border is seeing significant growth in semiconductors, telecommunications, medical devices, and aerospace components.
Both Marquez and Cisneros emphasized that the growth of advanced manufacturing is more than an economic indicator — it is a vital tool for community elevation.
"Advanced manufacturing, I think, perhaps more than any other industry that we have, has the ability to break the cycle of poverty in our community," Marquez said. "It creates at scale the largest number of jobs that can lead to the middle class that meet our population where they are in terms of their job experience, their education level, and their aspirations."
Regional organizations, including the Council for South Texas Economic Progress (COSTEP), are actively working with cross-border automotive clusters to market South Texas as the premier location for tier-supplier expansion.
Addressing concerns regarding border friction, cartels, and political rhetoric, the panel concluded that economic prosperity and cross-border integration remain the most effective defenses against regional instability.
"This region benefits the whole of the United States and North America so much," Marquez stated. "Ensuring that both sides of the border find that prosperity is perhaps our best defense."
Editor's Note: Click here to watch the KLRN-TV show.
