GTAI FDI Report
2021 Report: Business Expansions to Germany Back on the Rise
Foreign direct investment to Germany saw a big comeback in 2021 as Germany Trade and Invest’s FDI report recorded a seven percent increase which elevated greenfield project numbers to 1,806.
Report summary
1,806 international companies set up shop in Germany in 2021 in the form of greenfield investments. The number of projects was up seven percent over 2020, rebounding almost fully to 1,851 in the final pre-corona year 2019.
The overall volume, however, is expected to be well in excess of EUR 7 billion. And it doesn’t include the massive expansion projects first announced in 2022 by Intel and Northvolt, which were worth at least EUR 17 billion and EUR 4 billion respectively.
Read the full GTAI 2021 FDI Report press release.
Key findings
Germany’s federal states registered 1,806 FDI projects (greenfield, expansions, relocations, but excluding M&A) in 2021 - a seven percent rise compared to the previous year. Additionally, 229 M&A-deals were recorded, in which foreign investors bought more than 50 percent of shares.
- The US led all countries in greenfield projects with 254, while the EU was the leading source region.
- Foreign companies preferred investments in the ICT and communications sector, followed by business and financial services.
- 18 percent of these companies use Germany as a production or R&D location.
Charts
Download the 2021 GTAI FDI report
