Bogota 2013 Blog - Colombia: A Growing Hub for FDI
Foreign direct investment grew 18 percent in the Andean country last year, and five of its cities rank among the top destinations for investing in Latin America.
With booming mining and energy sectors, Colombia has increasingly become a larger recipient of foreign capital flows. In 2012, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Colombia rose 18 percent, hitting $15.8 billion. Last year, FDI in the Andean country even surpassed the regional average of 6.7 percent, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean reported. Natural resource extraction has played an important role: from 1995 to 2012, foreign investment in Colombia’s oil and mining sectors increased by 44.9 percent.
Given the greater investment flows, five of Colombia’s cities rank in the top 20 best destinations for investment in Latin America, according to a May 2013 study of 48 Latin American cities. The report by University of Rosario’s Center of Thought in Competitive Strategies and Chilean consulting firm Inteligencia de Negocios listed Bogota as the fifth most attractive city for investment in the region, ahead of Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires. Medellin came in at spot 13, while Cali was placed in spot 20, jumping 10 places from the report’s 2012 version. Barranquilla and Bucaramanga also made it to the top 30. The five Colombian cities in the ranking demonstrate dynamic economic growth, improved security, and 11 high-quality universities, the study’s authors told El Tiempo.
The study also looked at investment climate on a national scale. The report ranked Colombia fifth for investment climate, and second for economic stability. Factors that attract investors include a country’s purchasing power, its GDP per capita, and how rapidly its cities are growing. In 2013, Colombia’s economy is expected to grow around 4.1 percent, exceeding the regional average of 3.5 percent.