According to a recent report by FDI Intelligence, the UAE has experienced the largest surge in foreign direct investment (FDI) globally since the onset of the COVID pandemic, primarily due to Dubai’s contribution.
The report showed that the UAE received the largest increase in the number of FDI projects during this period, attracting 792 more FDI projects in the past three years than in the three-year period before the pandemic. Dubai alone accounted for 1,469 of these FDI projects, while Abu Dhabi had 273.
The report also revealed that 62.5% of Dubai’s foreign greenfield investments were in the business, technology, and financial services sectors. FDI Intelligence examined data over a three-year period starting in March 2020 when the WHO declared the pandemic, to analyze the investment prospects of countries globally.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar were ranked second and third, respectively, in terms of foreign direct investment (FDI) increase, followed by Costa Rica, Portugal, Spain, Poland, Ireland, Italy, and Belgium, according to Arabian Business.
The report also highlighted that several countries are now preferred by multinational corporations for investment, leading to a decrease in greenfield FDI announcements in many major economies. Moreover, the report identified the five countries with the most significant decline in FDI projects since the beginning of the pandemic among the G8 nations.
China recorded the largest decrease in FDI projects (-1210), followed by the UK (-1127), France (-577), the US (-529), and Russia (-500).
