Mexico "regrets" Ford's decision to scrap the plan to build a plant in the central Mexican state of San Luis Potosi, the Economy Ministry said on Tuesday, adding that it has made sure Ford will reimburse any costs and expenses from the state government to facilitate the now defunct investment.

In a surprising statement on Tuesday at 11am ET, in an act of goodwill toward the president-elect, the second largest U.S. automaker said it will scrap the $1.6 billion factory in Mexico and will invest $700 million at a Michigan factory, after President-elect Donald Trump had harshly criticized the Mexico investment plan.

The Mexican ministry said that jobs created in Mexico have contributed to maintaining other manufacturing jobs in the U.S. that would have disappeared to Asian competition.

Meanwhile, Mexico vowed to maintain its commitment to making Mexico a competitive nation to attract investment, and reiterated its commitment to modernizing NAFTA in a way that strengthens competitive capacity of North America.

It may find roadblocks in that regard if Trump follows through with his threat to build a "great, big wall" between the two nations.