Foreign Investment In Latin America Surges Over US$100 Billion
London, May 09 2008
With its natural resources markets and expanding infrastructure, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Latin America topped $100 billion for the first time in 2007, a UN agency said Thursday.
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) said the figure, which had reached a record $89 billion in 1999, soared to a new high of $106 billion in 2007. Foreign direct investment in the region rose 46 percent from 2006 to 2007, the report added. …" [Agence France Presse/Factiva]
Dow Jones notes that "…The pace of Latin America's FDI growth led the world's economically developing regions last year, said ECLAC, in a press release. Worldwide, developing countries averaged 17 percent FDI growth in 2007, and economies in transition from central planning to free markets averaged 43 percent growth, the commission said. …
In general, the services sector was the largest recipient of FDI in the region, particularly Brazil. But natural resources captured the biggest chunk of FDI in Chile, Colombia and Ecuador, and the manufacturing sector was the main recipient of FDI in Mexico. …" [Dow Jones/Factiva]
Reuters adds that "…The increase was driven by transnational companies seeking to expand into new markets and capitalize on demand growth for both goods and services, and in search of natural resources, the commission said in an annual report. …
Brazil alone saw an increase of $15.8 billion to $34.59 billion, an increase of 84 percent from a year earlier. In Mexico it rose 21 percent from a year earlier to $23.23 billion, and FDI in Chile rose 96 percent to $14.46 billion last year. Colombia was next with an increase of 40 percent to $9.03 billion. …" [Reuters/Factiva]
Ends --
Commodities Now
