Foreign Direct Investment increases by €72.4 million in first half of 2020 despite pandemic woes

Foreign direct investment (FDI) flows were estimated to be €1.7 billion during the first six months of 2020. This shows an increase of €72.4 million over the corresponding period in 2019, according to data released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Friday.

Financial and insurance activities accounted for 89.4 per cent of FDI flows in Malta.

In June 2020, the stock position of FDI in Malta amounted to €191.4 billion, an increase of €8.0 billion over the corresponding month of 2019. As in previous years, financial and insurance activities recorded the largest share at 97.7 per cent of FDI stocks in June 2020.

While FDI flows into Malta for the second half of 2020 remain to be seen, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTD) reports the collapsing of global FDI, falling by 42 per cent from $1.5 trillion (€1.2 trillion) in 2019 to an estimated $859 billion (€709 billion) in 2020.

Direct Investment

Abroad During the first six months of 2020, direct investment flows abroad totalled €3.2 billion, an increase of €5.0 million over the amount registered in the previous year. This change was mainly brought about by changes in equity capital.

The stock position of direct investment abroad stood at €59.2 billion in June 2020, down by €0.9 billion over the stock position in 2019. Financial and insurance activities made up 99.4 per cent of total FDI abroad.