FDI was down 32.9% y/y to US$ 279mn (7.6% of GDP) in 1Q18, according to GeoStat’s preliminary figures. The major reason behind this decrease was ownership transfer from non-resident to resident companies (e.g. acquisition of Geocell by Silknet) and reduction of debt liabilities to non-resident direct investors. The financial sector was the largest FDI recipient at US$ 110.6mn (+41.6% y/y, 39.6% of total), followed by construction sector at US$ 69.1mn (+26.9% y/y, 24.7% of total), transport at US$ 56.1mn (-55.0% y/y, 20.1% of total) and manufacturing at US$ 40.2mn (6.3x higher y/y, 14.4% of total). United Kingdom topped the list of investors with US$ 82.7mn (+2.8% y/y), followed by Azerbaijan at US$ 51.0mn (-47.3% y/y), and China at US$ 41.6mn (5.7x higher y/y).
Source : G&T
