Exports from Arizona hit a record $14.3 billion in 2000--the latest year for which statistics are available--with much of those goods going to Mexico, according to a study by the Arizona Department of Commerce.

Mexico imported $4.6 billion worth of goods from Arizona, a 43% increase over the prior year. Ever since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994, exports to Mexico from Arizona have increased substantially.

The $14.3 billion in exported Arizona-produced goods represents a 21% increase over exports in 1999 and was more than $500 million more than the former record of $13.8 billion in exports recorded in 1997.

Canada was Arizona's next largest trading partner, taking in $1.5 billion in Arizona-produced goods, a 25% increase over the amount posted in 1999. The state exported goods valued at $925 million to the United Kingdom in 2000, a 12% increase over the prior year. Malaysia purchased $925 million last year, which represented a 6% decrease from the prior year.

Electronics made up more than half the goods shipped internationally out of Arizona. The state is home to a major Intel Corp. chip fabrication plant; Motorola Inc.; Microchip; SGS Thompson; and Avnet, the largest distributor of electronic components in North America.

A number of corporations have located distribution facilities in Phoenix, Tucson and even closer to the Mexican border for distribution into Mexico and South America.