The UAE ranks first regionally and third globally in the emerging markets classification

A. Hussain

The Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index for the year 2024 issued by “Kearney”

The UAE ranked first in terms of The Middle East and North Africa region, and the third globally in the classification of emerging markets, according to the Foreign Direct Investment Confidence Index for the year 2024 issued by “Kearney”. For the first time since its inception 23 a year ago, the index provides an exclusive rating to enable business leaders to anticipate emerging markets that are most attractive to investors. The UAE was able to rank first regionally and third in the world after China and India, as a result of the strong growth witnessed by the country last year, its enhancement of an attractive business environment for investment, as well as its capabilities in the areas of technology and innovation. , the growth in the GDP of the UAE reached a high rate of 7.9%, while many countries suffered from weak growth in their domestic product following the economic boom that came after the Corona pandemic in 2018 2021. The economy in the UAE is expected to continue to grow at a steady pace in 2024 and 2024, with growth rates of 3.2%. and 4.8 percent, respectively.

In this regard, Rodolphe Le Maire, partner at the National Institute of Transformations, Kearney Middle East, said: “The UAE has competitive advantages that make it an attractive option for investors, especially after its launch of the Dubai Agenda Economic (D33) with a value of 8.7 trillion dollars, which aims to enhance trade and investment and consolidate Dubai’s global position as a leading global business center. He added: “The government of the UAE is committed to diversifying the economy and enhancing the business environment, which constitutes an essential engine for advancing economic development and keeping pace with the rapid developments taking place in the world.”

Foreign Investment Confidence Index Rankings at the Region Level

The UAE ranked 16 globally, and Qatar joined it in the rank (18)), and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ranked (23), which strengthened the presence of Middle Eastern countries on the global index.

As for the strong performance of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the global ranking index, it came as a result of the Kingdom recording high growth rates in GDP that reached 8.7% in 2022, in addition to carrying out comprehensive reforms To enhance the business environment, and the existence of encouraging expectations regarding the financial situation, as well as support for economic diversification in the country.

While Qatar jumped three places on the global ranking index during the year 2022 This is mostly due to its hosting of the FIFA World Cup last year, along with the National Vision 2030 that aims to develop and diversify the economy, which has led to increased investor interest in the country. It can be attributed to the strong growth rate of GDP in Qatar, which reached 4.1% in 2022, registering an increase of 1.5% compared to the year 2022, This indicates an increase in investor confidence in the Qatari market.

Moreover, the GCC countries have achieved advanced positions in the emerging markets classification. Qatar ranked fourth in the world, and Saudi Arabia ranked sixth in the world rankings. While investors are increasingly enthusiastic about investing in many countries in the Middle East; Egypt, Turkey and Morocco ranked and and 16 in the Emerging Markets classification, respectively.

FDI confidence index ratings on Global

The report issued by the International Management Consulting Company reflects the cautious optimism of investors regarding the global economy. In fact, more than three-quarters (86%) of investors said they plan to increase FDI in the next three years, while 66 indicated % of them indicate that foreign direct investment is the most important to them; It increases the profits of their companies and enhances their competitiveness in the next three years. However, investors’ positive sentiment mixes with concerns about recessionary risks.

In addition, Eric Peterson, managing director of the Global Business Policy Council at Kearney and co-author of the study, said: “Although investors are showing optimism regarding the outlook for foreign direct investment, but this year’s results reflect some of their investment concerns. He added, “Investors indicated that rising commodity prices, increasing geopolitical tensions, along with political instability in emerging markets are among the main risk factors over the next three years.”

The results of the global rankings came As follows: The United States ranked first in the world rankings, for the eleventh year in a row. Canada regained second place after falling to third place in 2022, while Japan jumped from fourth to third place, up one place from last year. As for Germany, it fell two places to fourth place, and this is likely to happen as a result of the economic challenges and the energy problem caused by the geopolitical crisis in Eastern Europe. While the United Kingdom maintains the fifth position, followed by France in the sixth position. China also jumped from the tenth place to the seventh place, perhaps due to Beijing’s decision to abandon its “zero Covid” policies in the fourth quarter of 2022. This year’s survey also showed once again the preference of investors for developed markets, which represents 16 a market out of 25 A market from the countries included in the global index.

The index for the year 2023 also revealed the vision of entrepreneurs that globalization will remain the central force in foreign direct investment. The majority of respondents ( percent) expected expansion of globalization in the next three years, while expecting it to decline) (percent) only of the respondents. Entrepreneurs who expect the expansion of globalization point to the presence of a group of factors that act as primary driving forces for expansion, such as the availability of digital infrastructure, the growth of commercial opportunities, in addition to the lack of trade barriers, but at the same time the Investors are realizing that globalization is changing.

Terry Toland, Director of the Global Business Policy Council at Kearney and co-author of the study, said: “While the results show that investors believe in the importance of globalization and expect it to expand, they also expect Consolidation of the regional character in national economies during the next three years, and that governments will work to implement national strategies to enhance their self-sufficiency.” He added: “Our findings indicate that globalization will continue, but its nature may change, which requires entrepreneurs to respond and deal with these changes. Potential in the future