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Mercado Libre will grow its headcount by 33% this year to solidify Latin America ecommerce dominance: The company looks to strengthen its business in Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina鈥攊ts three largest markets.

Latin America鈥檚 outlook has improved, led by Argentina. We have upgraded our 2025 Latin America ecommerce growth projection to 12.2%, versus 10.5% in Q1. That owes mostly to unexpected strength in Argentina. Latin America鈥檚 third-largest economy was not on our projected top 10 list for ecommerce growth at the beginning of the year, but it鈥檚 now on track to lead the world.

It鈥檚 also considering similar acquisitions in the Middle East and Argentina鈥攃onfirming aspirations of growing its global significance. Our take: Revolut鈥檚 potential acquisition of a US bank reflects a growing trend of successful fintechs becoming banks themselves through strategic acquisition rather than merely being disruptors.

That places the country second (behind only Argentina) in ecommerce and fourth in retail sales growth worldwide. Government programs like One Town, One Product (OTOP) are encouraging ecommerce adoption among businesses, while Temu鈥檚 2023 entry into the country has added momentum for online shopping.

Ad revenues per gross merchandise volume (GMV) rose across all countries, with Argentina narrowing the gap with Brazil and Mexico. Advertising鈥檚 share of GMV was 2.6% in Q2, up from 2.4% in Q1, based on our estimates. Mercado Libre expects that share to accelerate in Q3, and we project its retail media arm will capture 6.9% of digital ad spending in Latin America this year, up from 5.1% in 2024.

Instead of prioritizing Mexico as a primary entry point for US brands expanding into the region, it could redirect sellers to markets like Argentina and Peru, where leaders are actively pursuing trade liberalization policies to attract foreign businesses and investment.

础蝉辞肠颈补肠颈贸苍 Argentina de Log铆stica Empresaria (ARLOG). Dynata. GWI. Hibou. Ipsos. Mercado Libre. YouGov.

Interactive Advertising Bureau Argentina (IAB Argentina). Interactive Advertising Bureau Brasil (IAB Brasil). Interactive Advertising Bureau Chile (IAB Chile). Interactive Advertising Bureau Colombia (IAB Colombia). Interactive Advertising Bureau M茅xico (IAB M茅xico). Interactive Advertising Bureau Per煤 (IAB Per煤). Interactive Advertising Bureau Uruguay (IAB Uruguay). Magazine Luiza. RD Sa煤de.

Countries including Australia, Malaysia, Argentina, and Peru will see declines up to -0.9%, while Indonesia, Colombia, and Taiwan will see more modest shrinkage in active user base. These numbers signal a reversal of past expectations, when Facebook was presumed to still be expanding steadily across middle-income and mobile-first economies.

A more affordable YouTube Premium Lite plan鈥攍aunched earlier this year in the US, Australia, Thailand, and Germany鈥攊s now rolling out to users in Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, and the UK at $7.99 per month. Premium Lite removes most video ads on YouTube and YouTube Kids but excludes music, downloads, and background play.

Our analysis of the data for Argentina, Chile, and Colombia was written with AI assistance. Chart Overview by Country. Brazil. Mexico. Argentina. Chile. Colombia.

The region as a whole has a smaller crypto economy than North America and Western Europe, but Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico are in the top 20 countries for crypto adoption worldwide as of 2024, per a September 2024 Chainalysis report. In Mexico, crypto is increasingly used for remittances, while in Brazil, crypto trading is taking off.