Ireland is on the decline in the FDI rankings as investment here has fallen faster than its main competitors during the pandemic

Foreign investment in Ireland collapsed last year as the COVID-19 crisis took its toll.

Figures from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) show that the lowest foreign direct investment in Ireland in 2020 fell by 40% or $ 48 billion (40 billion euros) compared to 2019 .

The OECD said the drop was almost twice as high as in the UK and Canada, but not as high as the drop in flows to the US and the Netherlands.

Ireland recorded the highest inflows of foreign direct investment from the European Union in 2019, but fell below Luxembourg and Germany in 2020.

The United States is by far the biggest investor in Ireland.

The Central Statistical Office said more than a third of foreign direct investment simply goes through Ireland to affiliates in other countries.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said foreign direct investment flows to most countries declined last year, by 70% in the European Union.

“The epidemic has accelerated a steady decline and contributed to the decline in global flows of foreign direct investment to its lowest level since 2005,” the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said on Friday in its report on “Investments foreign direct in figures “.

However, the OECD said capital flows to Ireland in 2020 turned positive following several cross-border mergers and acquisitions.

The purchase of parent company Flutter Entertainment from US gaming giant FanDuel Group was one of its most valuable acquisitions last year, also merging financial firms Aon and Willis Tower Watson.

Meanwhile, Ireland’s investment outflows in 2020 were negative at – $ 49 billion (- € 41 billion), the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said on Friday, nearly three times the inflows. negative results recorded in 2019.

The Central Statistical Office said last year that the decline in direct investment in and outside Ireland was significantly affected by business restructuring in 2020.

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development said the global inflow of foreign direct investment overall declined by 38 percent by 2020, the lowest level since 2005.

Inflows in the OECD region fell by 51%, while outflows fell by 48%, largely influenced by large divestitures of companies in the Netherlands.

China overtook the United States as the top destination for foreign direct investment in the world in 2020, and India and Luxembourg followed suit.

Luxembourg, the United States and Japan were the main sources of foreign direct investment outflows.