Trade & Finance · Glossary
Foreign direct investment, net inflows (% of GDP)
BX.KLT.DINV.WD.GD.ZS
Definition
Foreign direct investment are the net inflows of investment to acquire a lasting management interest (10 percent or more of voting stock) in an enterprise operating in an economy other than that of the investor. It is the sum of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, other long-term capital, and short-term capital as shown in the balance of payments. This series shows net inflows (new investment inflows less disinvestment) in the reporting economy from foreign investors, and is divided by GDP.
Methodology for Trade & Finance indicators
Trade and finance indicators are sourced from customs declarations, balance-of-payments statistics, and central bank reporting. Exports and imports are usually reported FOB (free on board) for exports and CIF (cost, insurance, freight) for imports, which means global exports and global imports rarely sum to zero. Foreign direct investment data can be volatile year-over-year because of one-off cross-border acquisitions.
How to interpret
- Always check the unit and reporting year before comparing values across countries.
- NULL or "Not available" means the World Bank did not publish a value — we never estimate.
- Year-over-year changes can be driven by methodology updates, not just real economic shifts.
Related indicators in Trade & Finance
- Merchandise imports (current US$)
- Merchandise exports (current US$)
- Merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports)
- Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports)
- Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in East Asia & Pacific (% of total merchandise imports)
- Merchandise imports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise imports)
- Merchandise imports by the reporting economy (current US$)
- Merchandise exports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise exports)