Interpretation

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is cross-border investment made with the objective of establishing a lasting interest in the host economy. FDI is also defined by control relationships, where the direct investor (parent company) controls at least 10% of the voting power (ordinary shares) of the direct investment enterprise. These relationships can be measured in two directions:

• outward: the direct investments of UK-resident companies in other countries.

• inward: the direct investments in the UK from non-resident companies.

Several factors affected FDI statistics for 2020. This not only includes disruption from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and global recession, but also some changes to the FDI statistical populations and sampling methods. We advise caution when comparing results for 2020 with earlier years. More detail can be found in Foreign direct investment statistics, overview of methods changes: 2020.

Get the data

You can download this dataset in an XLSX, CSV or CSVW format, or download all available datasets in an XLSX or JSON-Stat format.

The original source data for this indicator can be found on the following page: Office for National Statistics(opens in a new tab).

Information on the strengths and limitations of the Explore Local Statistics service and methods used is available in the quality and methodology information (QMI) report.

Other indicators

Outward foreign direct investment is one of 104 local indicators on the Explore local statistics service. See the full list of local indicators.