An inflow of $12.8bn and almost 38,500 new jobs contributed to Dubai’s booming economy in 2022.

Dubai retained its number one spot globally for attracting Greenfield FDI projects in 2022, further reinforcing its position as the world’s top foreign direct investment hub, according to the latest data from the 2022 Financial Times ‘fDi Markets’ report.

Dubai investment

Retaining its top spot for a second successive year, Dubai achieved 89.5 per cent year-on-year growth in total announced FDI projects in 2022.

At the same time total FDI capital surged 80.3 per cent, further consolidating the emirate’s status as one of the top three global cities. This is a key goal of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 launched by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai said: “Dubai’s ability to secure the number one global ranking for Greenfield FDI projects for the second year in a row demonstrates its ability to sustain its compelling investment value proposition even at a time when the worldwide economy is facing headwinds.

“Driven by the vision of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the emirate offers the deep stability, sustainability, infrastructure and opportunity-rich environment needed to ensure the long-term trust of international investors, businesses and entrepreneurs.

“Over the years, Dubai has forged dynamic partnerships with global investors to accelerate innovation and create enduring economic value. Dubai leads the world in attracting FDI in a wide range of industries, especially future-oriented sectors, a fact that is a testament to the strategic vision articulated in the Economic Agenda D33, which aims to consolidate Dubai’s position as one of the world’s top urban economies.”

Financial Times fDi Markets data for 2022 showed that the emirate continued to maintain and improve its leadership position across key FDI attraction metrics.

The emirate ranked first in attracting FDI projects into tourism, business services, financial services, transport and warehousing, consumer products, software and IT services sectors.

Dubai also emerged as the 2022 world leader in attracting FDI projects in the creative industries cluster, in research and development projects, and in attracting FDI project headquarters by hosting international companies’ global and regional headquarters.

Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of the Department of Economy and Tourism, said: “Dubai’s leading global FDI ranking underpins a comprehensive framework of initiatives that were launched to further strengthen the city’s business and investment environment, based on the directives of Sheikh Mohammed.

“Our strategy to further consolidate the city’s position as one of the top three global cities, in line with the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33, is again strengthened by the achievement of attracting and stimulating FDI and reflects the confidence investors, multinational companies, start-ups, and global talent have in Dubai.

“The growth of the city’s share in global Greenfield FDI projects clearly indicates our strategy’s effectiveness and also highlights the city’s position as the capital of the global digital economy and a hub for innovation and technology, further ensuring that increasing FDI inflow remains a top priority and key goal of the D33 Agenda”.

Overall in 2022, Dubai ranked seventh globally in attracting Greenfield FDI Capital and fifth globally in FDI Jobs.

From a MENA perspective, the emirate ranked second in FDI Capital and first in FDI Jobs.

Compared to 2021, Greenfield FDI (wholly owned) and new forms of investments increased by 6 per cent in 2022.

The new forms of investments demonstrate the level of Dubai’s domestic market maturity and the diverse non-equity-based partnership opportunities across joint ventures, strategic alliances, sub-contracting, licensing, production-sharing franchising, and turnkey projects.

The emirate’s share in attracting global Greenfield FDI projects reached 4 per cent, an increase of 1.9 per cent compared to 2021, with a record 837 projects.

This enabled the city to achieve the highest growth in global shares across the past seven years, according to data from Financial Times’ fDi Markets, the most comprehensive online database on cross-border Greenfield investments.

The city attracted a total of 1,173 FDI projects in 2022.

Dubai FDI Monitor’s data also revealed that the total estimated FDI capital flowing into the emirate in 2022 was AED47bn ($12.8bn) compared to AED26.07bn in 2021.

An estimated 38,447 jobs were created in 2022 compared to 24,932 jobs in 2021.

The top five source countries for FDI projects accounted for 54% of the total in 2022, split among:

• United States (20%)
• United Kingdom (13%)
• India (12%)
• France (5%)
• Switzerland (4%)

Additionally, the top five source countries for FDI capital accounted for 72% of the total estimated flows into the emirate in 2022, split among Canada (41%), the United Kingdom (12%), the United States (11%), India (4%), and Switzerland (4%).

The top five sectors, which accounted for 76 per cent of total estimated flows into the emirate and 6 per cent of announced FDI projects were:

• Transportation and warehousing
• Hotels and tourism
• Renewable energy
• Software and IT services
• Consumer products