Foreign Direct Investment by Country (2024)

Global FDI Flows

Foreign direct investment represents long-term capital commitment to operating in another country — building factories, acquiring companies, or establishing new operations. Unlike portfolio investment (buying stocks and bonds), FDI brings technology transfer, management practices, and access to global supply chains. The United States, China, and Singapore are the world's largest FDI recipients in absolute terms, while small open economies dominate the FDI-to-GDP rankings due to their roles as financial and holding company hubs.

As a percentage of GDP, small open economies attract the most FDI — Ireland, Singapore, and Luxembourg have FDI stocks exceeding 100% of GDP, largely reflecting multinational tax structuring rather than physical production. For genuine operational FDI — factories, supply chain facilities, R&D centers — Mexico, Vietnam, and India are the standout destinations, benefiting from supply chain diversification away from China. FDI flows are tracked by UNCTAD via the World Bank.

The Trump administration's April 2026 tariff package has reshuffled global FDI geography at a pace not seen since the early 2000s China manufacturing boom. With US tariffs on Chinese goods reaching 145%, multinationals operating China-for-US export models are accelerating relocation. India recorded its highest-ever FDI inflows in FY2025–2026, driven by Apple and Samsung electronics manufacturing expansions and a surge in semiconductor fab announcements. Mexico, protected under USMCA, is absorbing auto and electronics factories. Vietnam, despite facing its own US tariff exposure, remains attractive for labor-cost arbitrage. China's FDI inflows fell sharply — UNCTAD estimates a 15–20% decline — as multinationals restructured their China presence from export-focused to domestic-market-only operations. The net effect is the most significant geographic rebalancing of global manufacturing investment in two decades.