The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has published a report on trade and investment trends in the region for 2024.
The full text of the report “Foreign direct investment trends and outlook in Asia and the Pacific 2024/2025” can be found here: https://unescap.org/kp/2024/foreign-direct-investment-trends-and-outlook-asia-and-pacific-20242025#
Greenfield investment inflows into North and Central Asia rose 27 per cent to US $24.8 billion year in 2023.
The countries that received the bulk of Greenfield FDI in the region were Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan.
Outflow from the subregion saw a sharp decline in 2024 after a rebound in 2023.
Outward investments dropped 58 per cent to US $2.3 billion, with 90 per cent or US$2.1 billion originating from the Russian Federation. Of this, Russian Federation based investors committed US $847 million into the coal, oil & gas sectors of India and Belarus. The other sources of outbound greenfield investments in the region were Georgia (US $105 million), Azerbaijan (US $76 million), Kazakhstan (US $47 million), and Armenia (US $7 million).
The report noted that the landscape of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Asia-Pacific continues to evolve rapidly amid global economic uncertainties, geopolitical shifts, and technological transformations. While 2024 has witnessed some moderation in investment flows following the record-breaking announcements of 2023, the region has demonstrated remarkable resilience and maintained its position as a premier destination for international capital.
Subregion of North and Central Asia includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, the Russian Federation, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.
///nCa, 30 December 2024