President Lee Jae Myung’s summit with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum strengthened protections for Korean investment in Mexico on Thursday, but preserving the North American country’s value as a gateway into the U.S. market will increasingly require Korean firms to localize their Mexican operations and reduce reliance on inputs from home.

That pressure is already visible from both sides of the North American border. Korean executives who joined Lee in Mexico City described the country as a critical bridgeheadinto North American and Latin American markets, while warning Sheinbaum that the ongoing review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) is making their