Long-term cross-border investments in factories and other projects globally are set to fall 10 to 15 per cent this year as companies delay decisions because of political uncertainty, says the UN.
Foreign direct investment flows had reached $1.8tn last year, their highest since the financial crisis, the UN Conference on Trade and Development reported yesterday in its World Investment Report.
That was good news for a global economy stuck in a low-growth path that has been making policymakers anxious. But the prospects for this year had dimmed, Unctad warned. A predicted 10 to 15 per cent fall reflected “the fragility of the global economy”, it said, with economists pointing to a weak start to the year.