
Global FDI projected to plunge 40% below $1 trillion in 2020
Global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows are projected to decrease by up to 40 per cent in 2020, from their 2019 value of $1.54 trillion, according to United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD’s) World Investment Report 2020.
The projected decrease is expected to bring FDI below $1 trillion for the first time since 2005 (figure 1). In addition, FDI is projected to decrease by a further five to 10% in 2021, and will initiate a recovery in 2022, the report says.
“The outlook is highly uncertain. Prospects depend on the duration of the health crisis and on the effectiveness of policies mitigating the pandemic’s economic effects,” said UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi.
According to UNCTAD, the pandemic is a supply, demand and policy sh...