Spain climbed to 13th place among regions attracting foreign investment in 2022, rising six positions from 19th in the previous year. The latest global investment report released by UNCTAD shows Spain increased its share of inbound investment by 58.5 percent, reaching 34,811 million dollars in 2022, while the global FDI flow declined about 12.4 percent to roughly 1.3 trillion dollars. The UN agency notes that downward pressure on foreign direct investment is expected to persist through 2023 across the world, underscoring a cautious investment climate.
Across 2022, the top recipients of foreign investment included the United States, which drew 285,057 million dollars, followed by China with 189,132 million, Singapore with 141,211 million, and Hong Kong with 117,725 million. Other notable entrants included Brazil, Australia, Canada, India, Sweden, the British Virgin Islands, France at 36,413 million, Mexico at 35,291 million, and Spain at 34,811.1 million. In this landscape, Spain managed to surpass several established economies that year, confirming its growing appeal for international capital. In contrast, major shifts occurred among traditional recipients such as Germany, Korea, Japan, Luxembourg and Russia, with Russia recording a substantial outflow after the onset of conflict in Ukraine. Germany reported a notable drop to 11,053 million dollars in 2022, roughly a quarter of its 2021 intake, illustrating the volatility that can accompany global tensions.
Infrastructures and energy
The UNCTAD assessment confirms a sharp global slowdown in foreign direct investment during 2022, with a 12.4 percent reduction that brought total FDI to about 1.3 trillion dollars after a rebound in 2021. The decline traces back to a confluence of factors often described as a global polycrisis: the war in Ukraine, elevated food and energy prices, and mounting debt burdens. Financing for cross-border projects and mergers and acquisitions grew tighter, and higher interest rates along with volatility in capital markets contributed to the cooling of investment activity.
From a sectoral lens, the report highlights a notable increase in project activity in Turkey, alongside sectors undergoing restructuring pressures. Electronics, automotive manufacturing, and machinery faced ongoing supply chain pressures. Even as the world contended with semiconductor shortages, the most prominent investment projects in the period included several semiconductor and microprocessor initiatives. Investments in the digital economy also faced deceleration after the rapid surge seen in 2020 and 2021, signaling a normalization after a period of exceptional growth.
On the energy front, the figures show a steady level of investment in energy project activity, which helps alleviate concerns that the downtrend in fossil fuel investments would reverse amid the energy crisis. At the same time, investments in renewable energy continued to rise globally, reflecting a long-term shift toward cleaner energy sources. Since the Paris Agreement of 2015, renewable energy investment has grown significantly in many developed economies, though more than 30 developing countries had yet to register a single large-scale renewable energy investment project as of the report period. [Attribution: UNCTAD analysis, 2023]