India reaches 15th spot in top FDI destinations in 2024: UNCTAD report

India moved up to 15th in global FDI rankings as flows stayed at $28 billion in 2023 despite a global drop and led Asia in capital expenditures for new projects

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into India remained unchanged year-on-year in 2024 at $28 billion even as global FDI flows dropped 11 per cent, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said on Thursday. In 2023, FDI inflows into India had plummeted 43 per cent in 2023 to $28 billion. 

 

According to UNCTAD's World Investment Report 2025, India moved up a notch in countries’ rankings for FDI inflows to hit the 15th spot in 2024.

 

According to data from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, FDI equity inflows stood at $50 billion in 2024-25 (FY25), up 13 per cent.

 

“The net FDI flows into India, excluding repatriation, was around $29 billion in FY25, according to Reserve Bank of India data. UNCTAD is using the same methodology used by the RBI, while referring to net FDI inflows to India, but it does so on a calendar year basis,” said Biswajit Dhar, distinguished professor, Council for Social Development.

 

The country is ranked fourth in terms of greenfield project announcement numbers, the same as the previous year. However, it slipped to the fifth position in international project finance (IPF) deals in 2024 with 97 deals, after recording the second highest number of deals in 2023. 

Figures in bracket denote rank in 2023 Source:UNCTAD

 

“Greenfield project activity was particularly strong in India and the United Arab Emirates, while IPF remained more concentrated in a few mature markets and large emerging economies. The disparity between trends in greenfield projects and IPF deals underlines the divergence between industrial investment and infrastructure development dynamics in the current global environment,” the report noted. 

 

The United States retained its top position for FDI inflows, followed by Singapore and Hong Kong, which moved up one place each in 2024. China slipped to the fourth spot last year from the second biggest FDI magnet destination with its inflows dropping to $116 billion from $163 billion in 2023.

 

While project numbers increased in most regions, only a few countries saw a significant uptick in the value of new project announcements. “India stood out with projected capital expenditures up by more than a quarter to $110 billion, almost a third of the total in Asia,” the report said.

 

Developed economies received 53 per cent of the total international private equity investment, while developing Asia attracted 46 per cent, with India emerging as the main recipient.

 

India, along with Brazil and Chile, hosts more than 30 per cent of international projects in developing economies, doubling their pre-2018 share, driven by strong renewable energy programmes.

 

Noting the expansion of operations by major technology firms — in both developed and emerging markets — the report highlighted Microsoft’s $3 billion investment to enhance its Cloud and AI infrastructure in India.

 

The report referred to Walt Disney’s partial exit from India operations through a $3 billion merger of Star India with Viacom 18 Media, creating a joint venture majority owned by Indian firms. Several pharmaceutical operations in India owned by international investors were also sold to local firms, the report said, stressing the sharp decline in cross border mergers and acquisition activity in developing Asia.

 

The annual investment report tracks international investment trends based on FDI statistics – stocks and flows, inward and outward as well as cross-border mergers and acquisitions, greenfield projects, and International project-finance deals.