FDI prospects 2021

Global Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) collapsed in 2020, falling by 42% to an estimated $859 billion, from $1.5 billion in 2019, FDI finished 2020 more than 30% below the trough after the global financial crises in 2009. Prospects for 2021, Global FDI flows will remain weak, but still any increase in global FDI flows is more likely to come from cross-border merging and acquisitions, rather than from new investment in productive assets; the expected leading industries will be technology and healthcare deals, and this includes pharmaceutical companies, research and development centers, hospitals, e-commerce platforms, data processing services, digital payments, video streaming, social media*

*:UNCTAD, Investment Trends Monitor, Issue 38, Jan 2021