Santiago de Querétaro (Spanish pronunciation: [sanˈtjaɣo ðe keˈɾetaɾo]) is the capital and largest city of the state of Querétaro, located in central Mexico. It is located 213 km northwest of Mexico City, 96 km southeast of San Miguel de Allende and 200 km south of San Luis Potosí. The founding date of the city is given as 25 July 1531, when during a battle between the Spanish and the natives of the area, an eclipse occurred during which Saint James on a white horse carrying a pink cross supposedly appeared, causing the natives of the areas to surrender. In reality, Spanish dominion here was gradual.
In 1996, the historic center of Querétaro was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Today, the city is one of the fastest-growing in the country, with its economic base in industries such as chemicals, paper products and machinery. This has caused the city and the metropolitan area to attract many migrants from other parts of Mexico.
The city of Querétaro has had an outstanding industrial and economic development in the last 15 years. The metropolitan area of Querétaro has one of the highest GDP per capitas in Mexico at US$20,000 as of 2009.
The city is host for major corporations such as Bombardier Aerospace (the only airplane manufacturing facility in Mexico), Kellogg's, Samsung Electronics, Daewoo, Colgate-Palmolive, General Electric, Michelin, Tetra Pak, Siemens, New Holland, ArvinMeritor, Autoliv, TRW Automotive, Tremec, Valeo Sylvania, Procter & Gamble, Nestlé, Pilgrim's Pride, Santander Bank's call center for Latin America, Mabe Mexico, Irizar, Scania, Hitachi, Kostal, Aernnova, Dana, Dow Chemical, Bose, Alpha Hilex, Saint-Gobain, Flex-N-Gate, and ThyssenKrupp, among others.
