The Gulf region is making extensive reforms to its foreign investment landscape in an effort to attract foreign investors to sectors outside oil and gas, according to a recent report by PwC. 

FDI levels have already fallen throughout Iran's main sphere of influence in the region. 

Lower fertility rates will boost economic growth, according to a demographic model developed by Renaissance Capital. 

$73.8m mega-project will be the first of its kind in the city.

Severe threats to the environment accounted for all of the five most likely long-term risks in the WEF’s Global Risks Report 2020.

Investors in France will face greater scrutiny under extended legislation.

Announced greenfield projects into China plummeted in early 2020 with the US and Europe taking the lion's share of global foreign investment. 

The UK’s prime minister has pledged to rebalance the UK economy away from a dominant London. However, this might require greater incentives for foreign investment in the regions outside of the capital, which are underperforming. 

Sustainability is gaining traction in the creative industries, with the Italian region of Trentino designing a film production rating protocol that is being considered by the EU.

From historically underperforming when compared with its peers, the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate is now attracting major investment projects on the back of its auto and electrification expertise.

Foreign investment into Serbia is growing at a healthy pace thanks to its attractive automotive manufacturing industry and highly regarded free zones.

Long-dominant global supply chains look less tenable in the light of pressures ranging from pandemics to disasters, trade tensions and protectionism.

Eco Equity is one of only a few Europe-based investors in medicinal cannabis from Africa and the Caribbean, an area in which the UK is missing an opportunity, according to CEO Jon-Paul Doran.

The Dutch appeal court has reinstated a major $50bn award to Yukos shareholders by Russia, in a long-running dispute.

The coronavirus pandemic could change human behaviour more permanently in future.

Once the powerhouse of the industrial US, the rust belt states have revived their economies with the help of foreign investment. 

The fallout from the pandemic looks set to stall trade and investment to Latin America.

Continued African development could hinge on public finance reforms.

Steve Armitage, general manager of destination at Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development explains why the New Zealand city’s international profile is growing so fast.

Global free zones may be spurring development in less economically developed countries

German chemical giant BASF has begun construction of its $10bn mega project in southern China, which will be the country’s first wholly foreign-owned chemical complex. 

Sino-European foreign direct investment is converging, according to data from fDi Markets.

The eastern Chinese city of Zibo is recognised as the official birthplace of football. However, its local government is hoping it will soon be known for its excellence in the chemical, medical and manufacturing industries.

Uruguay-based Zonamerica has successfully expanded into Colombia and China, and is now looking to export its model to other parts of Asia and Africa.

We are currently in a state of heightened business and economic disruption and sociopolitical activism, which only looks set to intensify. 

President Obrador aims to mobilise billions in public and private investment to create an alternative to the Panama Canal along the Tehuantepec corridor. 

US-led vetting and certification of big-ticket projects may go a long way to allaying western investor concerns about rule of law and transparency issues, says intelligence firm Alaco’s head of content.

The trend towards the vetting of foreign investment, especially projects that involve advanced technology and national data or pose potential security threats, is on the rise. David Gabathuler and Matthew T West give a trans-Atlantic perspective.

While governments grow more protectionist over trade and physical borders, companies such as Microsoft are bridging the gap by funding international collaborative enterprises.

Giant investment firm BlackRock throwing its weight behind sustainability issues is sending a signal to the corporate world to respond urgently to global calls for action, writes Gregg Wassmansdorf.

Poland’s Wrocław has turned in a stellar performance in fDi’s Return on Investment study, landing the city the top slot in the Return on Budget and Return on Personnel Investment categories. 

Up to 18 countries across Latin America have joined China’s new Belt and Road Initiative, hoping to boost their infrastructure development and investment.  

With a multilingual population, Antwerp enjoys a diverse talent pool that has made it a popular testbed for digital innovation and entrepreneurship.

Lisbon’s mayor discusses the city’s tech strengths and its solutions to business challenges, such as affordable housing.

Project numbers drop almost 40% between 2017 and 2018.

Mexico suffered a second year of dwindling manufacturing, with the US's trade policy taking its toll. However, Mexico remains an attractive location for US companies and their suppliers.

Investment into the Middle East region by US-based companies showed a notable increase between the beginning fo 2016 and the end of 2018. 

JinkoSolar Holding Co., the world’s biggest solar panel maker, sees China’s photovoltaic power additions slumping this year and a greater share of its revenue coming from overseas amid uncertainties over Beijing’s new policies.

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) said that is has begun operation of its electric thermal energy storage system (ETES), a milestone in the development of energy storage solutions, according to the company.

Hydrogen, which has been touted as the fuel of the future much of the past five decades, may finally be on the verge of converting its potential to reality.

In early June, the UK enshrined into law a commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, making Britain the first major economy to do so. Meeting this target will require substantial reliance on renewable energy from solar, tidal, hydro, and wind sources, both onshore and offshore.

Wind or solar now represent the least expensive option for adding new power generation capacity in approximately two-thirds of the world.

While the industry is welcoming more women leaders, its rank-and-file workforce is still a lot like those at fossil-fuel companies: white and dominated by men. The lack of gender diversity is being driven by manufacturing jobs, and that means women are now missing out on the biggest jobs boom America has to offer.

8minute Solar Energy, NV Energy and the Moapa Band of Paiutes announced that NV Energy selected 8minute to develop the largest solar plus storage project ever built in Nevada and one of the largest in the world.

Back in the 1980s and 1990s, the twin forces of privatization and deregulation of public infrastructure services ascended to a global paradigm of progress and development. Government management of services such as telecommunications, transportation, water, and energy was deemed inefficient, underperforming, and monopolistic. Private industry – accountable to the profits and losses of an open market and, thus, believed more efficient than government – was proclaimed the better way for consumer choice and a more efficient use of taxpayers’ expenses.