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Foreign direct investment (FDI) in South Korea gained 4.6 percent last year on
largely increased investment from advanced countries, the government said
Thursday.
The level of FDI in South Korea reached US$13.67 billion
last year, compared with $13.07 billion in 2010, according to the Ministry of
Knowledge Economy.
"Foreign investment in South Korea is beginning to
grow and the amount reached more than $13 billion in 2011 for the second
consecutive year since 2010, while the average amount since 2000 stayed below
$12 billion," it said in a press release.
"This appears to reflect the
growing confidence of the international community in the South Korean
economy."
Direct investment from advanced countries surged 33.6
percent on-year to about $9.69 billion with FDI from EU nations jumping 57.4
percent and the United States 20.2 percent.
FDI from developing
countries, on the other hand, dropped 31.6 percent to $3.98 billion from $5.81
billion in 2010, according to the ministry.
Investment from China
increased 21.6 percent to $1.94 billion over the cited period but investment
from the Middle East plunged 46.2 percent to $92 million as investor sentiment
remains low amid continued political unrest in the region.
The FDI in
South Korea's service sector gained 15.4 percent from a year earlier to $7.27
billion while foreign investment in the country's manufacturing industry dropped
15.1 percent to $5.65 billion.
The ministry said FDI in 2012 will
likely remain at around $13 billion.
"There is a favorable environment
created (or to be created) by the country's free trade agreements with the
United States and the EU for foreign companies to invest in South Korea, but
there are also risks created by the worsening debt crisis in Europe and a
possible global economic downturn."