FDI inflows to Saudi Arabia rise 4% to $4.7 bln in 2020: UNCTAD

Foreign direct investment (FDI) to Saudi Arabia is estimated at $4.7 billion in 2020, a rise of 4% compared with $4.56 billion a year earlier, according to a recent report of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The Saudi government's policies, which aim to promote investments and diversify economy in line with Vision 2030, started to bear fruit, the report said.

The growth in FDI to Saudi Arabia came despite the 42% drop in global FDI to $859 billion in 2020, compared with $1.5 trillion a year earlier, due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the report.

The global FDI is expected to remain weak in 2021, hurt by investors’ uncertainty and worries about potential fresh COVID-19 outbreaks, but is projected to improve in 2022, UNCTAD said.