Paraguay manufacturing sector grows 26% amid rising investment

Paraguay’s manufacturing sector is experiencing significant expansion, with industrial manufactures growing by 26% and exports of manufactured goods increasing by the same margin compared to the previous year. The sector currently accounts for approximately 19% of the national GDP, with a production value of USD 8.548 billion in 2024.

Official data indicates there are over 29,700 manufacturing establishments in the country, employing between 333,000 and 355,000 people. While historically tied to agro-industrial raw materials, the sector is diversifying into textiles, plastics, metallurgy, and auto parts, driven largely by the maquila regime. Investment under special regimes has reached approximately USD 800 million.

To support this growth, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce has launched a digital competitive intelligence tool to help investors identify regional industrial capacities. Despite this momentum, the Union Industrial Paraguaya (UIP) has called for long-term certainty, emphasizing the need for improvements in infrastructure, logistics, reliable energy, financing, and legal security to allow the industry to scale effectively.