Relationship between trade openness and foreign direct investment: Case of Mexico

In the context of Mexico’s trade relations, the main aim of this article is to analyze the relationship and intensity between trade openness and foreign direct investment in Mexico, taking into account 18 countries with which there is a Bilateral Investment Treaty. Data analysis was performed through normality tests, followed by scatter and box plots, and the application of Spearman’s bivariate correlation method, with a sample of 84 data in quarterly periods per country. The results infer a direct relationship between the variables for the countries of South Korea, China, Germany and Italy, that is, greater foreign direct investment result in greater trade openness in Mexico during the period 2000-2020. However, it is concluded that in the case of Mexico the COVID-19 effect must be considered.