Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the United States dropped by 5.5 % in 2008 compared to the previous year. In China FDI rose by 10.7% in 2008. An article in the Economist today show that Brazil and Russia had increases of 17.5% and 20.5 percent respectively. Topping the list of FDI increases among major economies is India. Of course China is still ahead of other countries in absolute numbers of investment dollars flowing in. But the trends are worth noting and may be accentuated in 2009.
Another large source of incoming money in Mexico, China and India is “remittances” about $25 billion per year. These are funds sent by expatriates; most often expats working in developed countries such as USA/UK or in the oil rich Persian Gulf nations. Remittances to India are not expected to slow down this year, according to another article in the Economist.
