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Ireland in 4th place in survey of most attractive European locations for FDI

A new survey shows that Ireland comes in fourth place in the league
table of attractive European locations for foreign direct investment in
2021.

The EY European Attractiveness Survey was conducted among across 47 countries in October.

Survey respondents were asked to select the three European countries
they believed will be the most attractive for investment in 2021 with
Germany, the UK and France taking the top three spots, followed by
Ireland.

The research also revealed shifts in FDI trends and investor sentiment when the last survey was carried out in April.

More investors now feel that Europe will be a more favourable
destination for FDI post-Covid-19, with 21% of investors holding this
view compared to just  8% in April. 

51% of respondents also said they believe that Europe will be equally
attractive for investment in a post-Covid-19 world, compared to 43% who
held that view in April. 

In October, 42% of executives expected a drop in investment plans in
2020, compared to 66% in April of this year. 10% of executives now
anticipate investments increasing before the end of 2020 – this compares
to no executives who responded in April. 

Just 2% of executives in April said they were not planning any
changes to their supply chains, but this rose to a third in October. 

“Mirroring this shift of sentiment, significantly fewer companies are
contemplating reshoring or nearshoring (37% from 83% in April). Many
multinational companies would prefer to avoid disruptive and costly
reorganisations right now,” EY said. 

It said that some companies may relocate selected critical activities
to Europe, mitigating future disruption risks, but it will take time
and incentives before this drives mass investments in Europe.

Meanwhile,
the survey reveals that future investment decisions will be less
influenced by national stimulus plans alone. 80% of investors considered
national recovery plans to be a major factor in April, reducing to 32%
in October. 

Work safety is now a growing priority particularly in sectors where employees’ health is most vulnerable, EY added.

EY Ireland Partner & Head of FDI Feargal De Freine said that at a
time of such global economic uncertainty, it is reassuring to see
sustained interest among foreign investors in Ireland as an attractive
location for investment over the past six months. 

“Ireland’s position as the fourth most attractive European country
for investment in 2021, behind the three powerhouse economies of
Germany, the UK, and France, positions us well to compete for growing
levels of global FDI as we navigate 2021,” he added.

Article Source: Ireland in 4th place in survey of most attractive European locations for FDI – RTE

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