India among top 10 global economies for FDI in 2021: UN

UNITED NATIONS: Foreign Direct Investment inflows to India declined $19 billion to $45 billion in 2021 but the country still remained among the top 10 global economies for FDI last year, the United Nations said on Thursday.

According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Report, flows of foreign direct investment recovered to pre-pandemic levels last year, hitting nearly $1.6 trillion.

However, the prospects for this year are grimmer as global FDI in 2022 and beyond will be affected by the security and humanitarian crises caused by the Ukraine war, by macroeconomic shocks set off by the conflict, by energy and food price hikes, and by increased investor uncertainty.

India, which had received $64 billion in FDI in 2020, recorded a decline in FDI inflows in 2021 at $45 billion. But India was still among the top 10 economies for FDI inflows in 2021, ranking 7th after the US, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Canada and Brazil. South Africa, Russia and Mexico rounded up the top 10 economies for FDI inflows in 2021. “Flows to India declined to $45 billion. However, a flurry of new international project finance deals were announced in the country: 108 projects, compared with 20 projects on average for the last 10 years,” the report said, adding that the largest number of 23 projects was in renewables.

Large projects include the construction of a steel and cement plant in India for $13.5 billion by Arcelormittal Nippon Steel (Japan) and the construction of a new car manufacturing facility by Suzuki Motor (Japan) for $2.4 billion.

Outward FDI from South Asia, mainly from India, rose by 43 per cent to $16 billion.

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