Data / Rankings / Foreign direct investment, net inflows / EU countries

EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows

Malta had the highest foreign direct investment, net inflows of 27 EU countries in 2018, at 452.22% of GDP. Luxembourg had the lowest, at -117.23% of GDP. The median was 2.67% of GDP. Source: the World Bank.

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Highest452.22Malta
Lowest-117.23Luxembourg
Median2.6727 EU countries

Map of EU countries, 2018

Austria: -6.15 % of GDPBelgium: -7.67 % of GDPBulgaria: 2.74 % of GDPCyprus: 307.09 % of GDPCzechia: 3.3 % of GDPGermany: 4 % of GDPDenmark: 2.47 % of GDPEstonia: 4.08 % of GDPSpain: 4.47 % of GDPFinland: -3.84 % of GDPFrance: 2.79 % of GDPGreece: 1.89 % of GDPCroatia: 2.67 % of GDPHungary: -40.11 % of GDPIreland: 20.36 % of GDPItaly: 2.11 % of GDPLithuania: 2.4 % of GDPLuxembourg: -117.23 % of GDPLatvia: 1.32 % of GDPMalta: 452.22 % of GDPNetherlands: -36.4 % of GDPPoland: 3.35 % of GDPPortugal: 3.47 % of GDPRomania: 3.04 % of GDPSweden: -0.13 % of GDPSlovenia: 2.86 % of GDPSlovakia: 2.11 % of GDP
  • Under -36
  • -36 to -6
  • -6 to 0
  • 0 to 3
  • 3 and over
% of GDP, 2018. Red areas are below zero and blue areas above it. Source: World Bank, Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). Boundaries: Natural Earth (public domain).

All EU countries, 2018

Malta: 452.22 % of GDPMalta452.22Cyprus: 307.09 % of GDPCyprus307.09Ireland: 20.36 % of GDPIreland20.36Spain: 4.47 % of GDPSpain4.47Estonia: 4.08 % of GDPEstonia4.08Germany: 4 % of GDPGermany4Portugal: 3.47 % of GDPPortugal3.47Poland: 3.35 % of GDPPoland3.35Czechia: 3.3 % of GDPCzechia3.3Romania: 3.04 % of GDPRomania3.04Slovenia: 2.86 % of GDPSlovenia2.86France: 2.79 % of GDPFrance2.79Bulgaria: 2.74 % of GDPBulgaria2.74Croatia: 2.67 % of GDPCroatia2.67Denmark: 2.47 % of GDPDenmark2.47Lithuania: 2.4 % of GDPLithuania2.4Slovakia: 2.11 % of GDPSlovakia2.11Italy: 2.11 % of GDPItaly2.11Greece: 1.89 % of GDPGreece1.89Latvia: 1.32 % of GDPLatvia1.32Sweden: -0.13 % of GDPSweden-0.13Finland: -3.84 % of GDPFinland-3.84Austria: -6.15 % of GDPAustria-6.15Belgium: -7.67 % of GDPBelgium-7.67Netherlands: -36.4 % of GDPNetherlands-36.4Hungary: -40.11 % of GDPHungary-40.11Luxembourg: -117.23 % of GDPLuxembourg-117.23Malta: 452.22 % of GDPMalta452.22Cyprus: 307.09 % of GDPCyprus307.09Ireland: 20.36 % of GDPIreland20.36Spain: 4.47 % of GDPSpain4.47Estonia: 4.08 % of GDPEstonia4.08Germany: 4 % of GDPGermany4Portugal: 3.47 % of GDPPortugal3.47Poland: 3.35 % of GDPPoland3.35Czechia: 3.3 % of GDPCzechia3.3Romania: 3.04 % of GDPRomania3.04Slovenia: 2.86 % of GDPSlovenia2.86France: 2.79 % of GDPFrance2.79Bulgaria: 2.74 % of GDPBulgaria2.74Croatia: 2.67 % of GDPCroatia2.67Denmark: 2.47 % of GDPDenmark2.47Lithuania: 2.4 % of GDPLithuania2.4Slovakia: 2.11 % of GDPSlovakia2.11Italy: 2.11 % of GDPItaly2.11Greece: 1.89 % of GDPGreece1.89Latvia: 1.32 % of GDPLatvia1.32Sweden: -0.13 % of GDPSweden-0.13Finland: -3.84 % of GDPFinland-3.84Austria: -6.15 % of GDPAustria-6.15Belgium: -7.67 % of GDPBelgium-7.67Netherlands: -36.4 % of GDPNetherlands-36.4Hungary: -40.11 % of GDPHungary-40.11Luxembourg: -117.23 % of GDPLuxembourg-117.23
% of GDP. Source: World Bank, Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankEU countries2018
% of GDP		Change on 2017
1Malta452.22+152.4 pts
2Cyprus307.09+123.03 pts
3Ireland20.36-0.06 pts
4Spain4.47+1.93 pts
5Estonia4.08-2.24 pts
6Germany4+1.11 pts
7Portugal3.47-1.55 pts
8Poland3.35+0.97 pts
9Czechia3.3-1.77 pts
10Romania3.04+0.2 pts
11Slovenia2.86+0.38 pts
12France2.79+1.1 pts
13Bulgaria2.74-0.65 pts
14Croatia2.67-0.57 pts
15Denmark2.47+1.38 pts
16Lithuania2.4-0.5 pts
17Slovakia2.11-2.29 pts
18Italy2.11+1.66 pts
19Greece1.89+0.17 pts
20Latvia1.32-2.73 pts
21Sweden-0.13-4.67 pts
22Finland-3.84-10.51 pts
23Austria-6.15-9.53 pts
24Belgium-7.67-0.22 pts
25Netherlands-36.4-60.18 pts
26Hungary-40.11-31.48 pts
27Luxembourg-117.23-75.58 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Net foreign investment inflows to acquire a lasting management interest of at least 10% of voting stock, as a percentage of GDP. Includes equity, reinvested earnings and other capital recorded in the balance of payments.

Net inflows subtract disinvestment from new investment. Negative values indicate net disinvestment; zero is a valid net balance. Flows can exceed GDP, particularly in financial centers. The latest year varies by country.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the EU countries are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

World Bank, World Development Indicators. Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

World Bank. (2026). Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS) (EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS

MLA 9

Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS), EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018. World Bank, 8 Oct. 2026, https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

World Bank. 2026. Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018.

Harvard

World Bank (2026) Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS), EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018 [Dataset]. Available at: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{world_eu_countries_by_foreign_2018,
  author = {{World Bank}},
  title = {{Foreign direct investment, net inflows (\% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS): EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018. Publisher attribution: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Foreign direct investment, net inflows (\% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - World Bank
TI  - Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS): EU countries by foreign direct investment, net inflows, 2018
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/08
PB  - World Bank
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/fdi-net-inflows-gdp/eu-countries?period=2018.
N1  - Publisher attribution: World Bank, World Development Indicators. Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-12. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
ER  -
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Questions

Which EU country has the highest foreign direct investment, net inflows?

Malta, with 452.22% of GDP in 2018, according to the World Bank.

Which EU country has the lowest foreign direct investment, net inflows?

Luxembourg, with -117.23% of GDP in 2018.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: World Bank, Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP) (BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS). Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Foreign direct investment, net inflows: other rankings

EU countries: more rankings