Ranked 2nd in 2019 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) with USD 23.3 billion
- Entered the USD 20 billion FDI stabilization phase by achieving “USD 20 billion for the fifth consecutive year”
- Active investments in materials, parts/components, equipment/facilities, global R&D centers, new industries, and high-end consumer goods
The performance of the 2019 FDI recorded US$ 23.3 billion (based on the official report), ranking second in history and achieving “USD 20 billion for the fifth consecutive year”
(ranked 4th in history with USD 12.8 billion, based on the total direct investment received).
The performance in 2019 is slightly above the recent five-year average of USD 23.08 billion. Foreign companies have invested more than USD 20 billion annually for five consecutive years since 2015. The Ministry of Industry stated, saying, “It shows that Korea has entered the stage where promising trends in attracting USD 20 billion of global FDI flows is secured."
< FDI Performance for the Last 10 Years (‘10-’19) (Unit: USD billion) >
| 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 5-year average |
10-year average |
|
| Reported | 130.7 | 136.7 | 162.9 | 145.5 | 190.0 | 209.1 | 213.0 | 229.5 | 269.0 | 233.3 | 230.8 | 192.0 |
| Received | 54.5 | 66.6 | 107.2 | 98.9 | 123.4 | 165.9 | 108.0 | 137.5 | 172.6 | 127.8 | 142.4 | 116.2 |
| 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | |
| Reported | 130.7 | 136.7 | 162.9 | 145.5 | 190.0 | 209.1 |
| Received | 54.5 | 66.6 | 107.2 | 98.9 | 123.4 | 165.9 |
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 5-year average |
10-year average |
|
| Reported | 213.0 | 229.5 | 269.0 | 233.3 | 230.8 | 192.0 |
| Received | 108.0 | 137.5 | 172.6 | 127.8 | 142.4 | 116.2 |
The performance of the 2019 FDI showed a tendency of improvement in the second half of the year, while showing slightly lower performance in the first half of the year.
< The Tendency of FDI Inflows by Quarter in 2019 (Unit: USD billion, %) >
| 1st Quarter | 2nd Quarter | 3rd Quarter | 4th Quarter | Yearly | ||||||
| Amount | Change | Amount | Change | Amount | Change | Amount | Change | Amount | Change | |
| Reported | 31.7 | △35.7 | 67.0 | △38.1 | 36.1 | 4.7 | 98.4 | 27.9 | 233.3 | △13.3 |
| Received | 27.9 | △10.5 | 31.3 | △56.3 | 16.8 | △17.1 | 51.9 | 4.3 | 127.8 | △26.0 |
| 1st Quarter | 2nd Quarter | 3rd Quarter | ||||
| Amount | Change | Amount | Change | Amount | Change | |
| Reported | 31.7 | △35.7 | 67.0 | △38.1 | 36.1 | 4.7 |
| Received | 27.9 | △10.5 | 31.3 | △56.3 | 16.8 | △17.1 |
| 4th Quarter | Yearly | |||
| Amount | Change | Amount | Change | |
| Reported | 98.4 | 27.9 | 233.3 | △13.3 |
| Received | 51.9 | 4.3 | 127.8 | △26.0 |
During the first half of the year, foreign investors took a bit of a wait-and-see attitude towards investments in Korea as corporate tax exemptions were abolished in 2019 amidst deteriorating external conditions such as the US-China trade dispute and the decline in global investment demand. However, in the second half of the year, the situation had changed and showed an upward tendency as the results of the central and local governments efforts in attracting excellent companies by using increased cash grants as incentives.
In addition, M&A mega deals, which were delayed slightly due to financing and corporate combination review, were reported continuously. As the result, the FDI performance reached its highest of (USD 98.4 billion) in the fourth quarter of the year.
Despite the difficult internal and external conditions, the central and local governments worked together. As the result, the long-term uptrend was maintained by recording the second-largest FDI attraction in history.
| Investments in materials, parts/components and equipment/facilities | ① Core materials for secondary batteries (positive electrode/cathode materials), ② High-performance plastics/polymers, ③ Pulled excellent projects off, contributing to the stabilization and localization of core materials in industries such as system semiconductors (power semiconductors) |
|---|---|
| Investments in R&D | Attracted domestic R&D centers of global semiconductor equipment companies. Investment in R&D, specialty, and science and technology fields had more than doubled in 2019, compared to the previous year. (3.6→USD 790 million) |
| Investment in Others | Active M&A, targeting domestic promising companies with technology and innovation in new fields such as high-end consumer goods (K-Beauty, Food, Culture, etc.), and IT platform (cold chain, sharing economy, accommodation, etc.) |
Source & Inquiries: Office of International Trade & Investment, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
TEL. 044-203-4086