New Delhi: India has improved its position by two ranks to become the world’s 11th largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI), with inflows surging nearly 44 per cent to $38.89 billion in 2025, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development’s (UNCTAD) ‘World Investment Report’ released on Tuesday.
The country was placed at the 13th position among global FDI recipients in 2024, with inflows of $27.09 billion.
“India continued to strengthen its position as a major investment destination in 2025, supported by an active policy agenda aimed at broadening its investment base beyond services and accelerating advanced manufacturing,” the UNCTAD report states.
India’s rebound contrasted with a relatively subdued trend across developing economies, where FDI inflows increased just 2 per cent. Developing economies in Asia recorded a 3 per cent rise.
China retained its fourth position among global FDI destinations despite inflows declining to $104.66 billion in 2025 from $116.24 billion a year earlier. The United States, the world’s largest FDI recipient, also recorded a 2 per cent decline in inflows to $277 billion.
India also attracted the world’s largest announced greenfield investment projects in 2025. US-based Alphabet (Google’s parent company) announced a $14.5 billion investment for a mega data centre in India, topping the global list. Poland also emerged as a major investor after Hynfra announced a $4 billion investment in Andhra Pradesh.
“The policy framework in India remains oriented towards advanced manufacturing, infrastructure development and deeper integration into global value chains. However, tariff uncertainty, supply chain realignment and weaker global investment sentiment are affecting the scale of new manufacturing and infrastructure commitments,” the report states.
India’s outward FDI increased 47 per cent to $35.66 billion in 2025, from $24.26 billion a year earlier, helping the country climb two places to 18th among the world’s top home economies for FDI, according to the UNCTAD report.
The value of overseas greenfield projects announced by Indian companies also rose 41 per cent to $25.29 billion. Rana Group’s $10 billion investment announcement for an automotive original equipment manufacturing facility in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) featured among the world’s five largest greenfield project announcements during the year.
(IANS)
