Spain maintains the attractiveness for foreign direct invest

01.10.2009

Spain has become the sixth largest economy of the world and third of the EU in attracting Foreign Direct Investment…

According to the "World Investment Report 2009" prepared annually by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Spain has become the sixth largest economy of the world and third of the EU in attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Spain received 65.539 million dollars in FDI, it represents a step in the ranking established in relation to previous years when occupied a lower position, like in the year 2007 when it was the seventh largest recipient of FDI.

The Bank of Spain confirmed that the FDI received by Spain would have an increase of 1.9% to reach 70.200 million. Meanwhile the share of FDI received by Spain in the world grew by 3.9% in 2008, representing an increase of 3.5% over 2007.

Spain's attractiveness for FDI is based on the availability of a workforce with a high professional standing and the existence of a sophisticated local demand. Spain also has positioned itself as a privileged access platform to other markets such as Latin America and the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa), for geostrategic reasons, cultural and business opportunity.

The sectors and activities that most attracted foreign capital are the trade group, with 47% of the total, followed by production and distribution of electricity, gas and water, with 27.3% and financial intermediation banking and insurance with the 9.4%.

Spain currently offers attractive investment opportunities in sectors with high growth potential, such as information technology and communication (ICT), renewable energy, biotechnology, environment and water treatment and aviation. It is precisely in these sectors where the greenfield projects (new productive investment) increased more.

*Source: Ministry of Industry