The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in its Global Investment Trend Monitor report has stated that India was among the top 10 recipients of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in 2019, attracting $49 billion in inflows, a 16 percent increase from the 42 billion dollars recorded in 2018, driving the FDI growth in South Asia. It noted that the majority went into services industries, including information technology.
According to the report, the FDI flows to developed countries remained at a historically low level, falling by a further 6 percent to an estimated $643 billion. It also said that global FDI remained flat in 2019 at $1.39 trillion, a 1 percent decline from a revised $1.41 trillion in 2018. This is against the backdrop of weaker macroeconomic performance and policy uncertainty for investors, including trade tensions. Besides, it showed that cross-border M&As decreased by 40 percent in 2019 to $490 billion - the lowest level since 2014. Slowed down by sluggish Eurozone growth and Brexit, European M&A sales halved to $190 billion. Deals targeting United States companies remained significant - accounting for 31 per cent of total M&As.
Going ahead, the report expects the FDI flows to rise moderately in 2020, as current projections show the global economy to improve somewhat from its weakest performance since the global financial crisis in 2009. It also said GDP growth, gross fixed capital formation and trade are projected to rise, both at the global level and, especially, in several large emerging markets. It also expects corporate profits to remain high and signs of waning trade tensions emerge. However, it said that the decrease of announced greenfield projects by 22 per cent - an indicator of future trends, high geopolitical risks and concerns about a further shift towards protectionist policies temper expectations.
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