MEXICO CITY, March 7 (Reuters) - Latin American

e-commerce giant MercadoLibre ( MELI ) will invest $3.4 billion

in Mexico this year, focusing on its tech product and financial

services, an executive from the firm said on Friday.

"This figure represents a 38% increase compared to our

investment last year," said David Geisen, the firm's Mexico

head, at a press conference alongside Mexican President Claudia

Sheinbaum.

MercadoLibre ( MELI ) plans to bring 10,000 more people on board this

year to work in logistics, financial technology, administration

and other areas in Mexico, Geisen said, bringing its total

workforce in the country up to 35,000.

The e-commerce platform has boomed in recent years, and

Mexico is now MercadoLibre's ( MELI ) second-largest market in the

region, Geisen said.

The announcement comes as Mexico has

cracked down on shipments

coming from MercadoLibre's ( MELI ) Chinese competitors, such as

Temu and Shein, through import tariffs.