Riyadh – Mubasher: The Saudi economy brought higher net foreign direct investment (FDI) during 2020 despite the coronavirus pandemic-induced challenges and the slowdown in the global economy.

According to initial estimates from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Saudi Arabia brought in $4.7 billion (SAR 17.63 billion) in inflows last year, up by 4% on a year-on-year (YoY) basis.

Global FDI collapsed in 2020, falling by 42% to an estimated $859 billion, from $1.5 trillion in 2019, marking its lowest since the global financial crisis (GFC), according to the UNCTAD report.