BERLIN (Reuters) – The number of foreign companies settling in Germany is expected to fall by almost a fifth in 2023 but the country remains Europe’s most sought after destination for foreign direct investment, Germany Trade & Invest said on Tuesday.
Other countries such as Switzerland and France have also noted declines as companies lean towards mergers and acquisitions rather than investments in an uncertain economic environment, the economic development agency’s managing director Achim Hartig said.
Pledged investments were of higher value than previous years, with the largest from energy company BP, which plans to spend 6.8 billion euros ($7.36 billion) on two wind farms in the North Sea.
Three data centres in Berlin, Brandenburg and Hanau were also announced, each expected to top the one-billion-euro mark.
Germany’s growing availability of renewable energy made it attractive to potential investors, Hartig said, though high prices remained a barrier.
($1 = 0.9239 euros)
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(Reporting by Rene Wagner; Writing by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Christina Fincher)