Because of the economic crisis, Foreign Direct Investment flows have practically vanished, and in order to attract the few investments that are projected for next year, countries are expected to compete by offering incentives and aid programs for businesses.
The covid-19 outbreak dissipated the investment intentions of companies globally. At the beginning of the fourth quarter of the year, there are signs that business confidence has begun to recover; however, pessimism among investors is expected to continue next year.
The health and economic crisis will result in a reordering of foreign investment at the global level, and countries like Central America will have the opportunity to take advantage of their geographical position to attract fresh capital.
The outbreak of covid-19 worldwide will cause a drop in production in 2020, however, by 2021 and 2022 the forecasts of international organizations anticipate that economic activity could rebound, a rise that would be coupled with new investments in various markets and sectors.
Panama and Honduras were the only two Central American countries to report increases in foreign direct investment in 2018 over the previous year, with year-on-year changes of 36% and 3%, respectively.
The growth of investments directed to Panama, which concentrated 51% of the sub-regional total, explained the increase that was reached in 2018 in Central America (9.4%), since except Panama and Honduras, the Central American countries received less Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) than in 2017, explains the report "Foreign Direct Investment in Latin America and the Caribbean 2019", produced by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).
The reported drop in investment in the tourism sector explains part of the 22% drop recorded in Foreign Direct Investment between 2017 and 2018 in Costa Rica.
Figures from the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) detail that between 2017 and 2018 the flow that reached the country fell by $608 million, from $2,742 million to $2,134 million, equivalent to a decrease of 22%.
In the context of a considerable fall in foreign investment in the sector in Costa Rica, the situation could be further complicated by the elimination of tax incentives that tax reform is bringing along.
Figures from the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) detail that after reporting $443 million in foreign direct investment in tourism in 2017, this figure decreased dramatically last year, registering only $23 million.
Despite the location and the fiscal benefits that in some cases the countries of the region offer, the lack of education of the population will be the main barrier to continue attracting large investments.
The lack of guarantee of finding the competent and sustainable human capital necessary for the proper operation of companies is an issue that negatively influences the attraction of important investments in Central America.
U.S. medical technology company Stryker announced the opening of a financial services center in the country, through which it will support its operations in the region.
From the statement of the Costa Rican Coalition of Development Initiatives:
San José, Costa Rica. November 5, 2018. Stryker, one of the world’s leading medical technology companies, announced it will open an office in Costa Rica, as it creates a hub for finance activities and services.
Foreign Direct Investment decreased from $1.658 million to $1.199 million between the first half of 2017 and the same period in 2018.
According to data from the Central Bank of Costa Rica reported a decrease in the flow of the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) during the first half of 2018, contrasts with the increase of 52% recorded in the same period last year, given that between the first six months of 2016 and the same period in 2017, the flow went from $1.088 million to $1.658 million.
Partly explained by the regimes created to encourage investment in different sectors, countries in the region went from receiving $11 billion in 2016, to $12.1 billion last year.
According to a study by the Center for Economic Integration Studies, in 2017 inflows of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the region reached a record figure of $12.083 billion, registering an increase of 9.8% compared to 2016.When analyzing the period from 2010 to 2017, it can be seen that the inflow of FDI has increased considerably, showing a growth rate of 7.9%.
Eurofins Scientific has announced the opening of a technology center in Costa Rica, from where it will support IT operations for the North and South of the continent of America.
From a statement issued by the Cinde:
San José, Costa Rica, June 13, 2018.Eurofins Scientific, global leader in bio analysis, inaugurated its new technology center in Costa Rica and plans to hire more than 50 Costa Ricans with knowledge in information technology, IT infrastructure, data centers and IT operations, as well as application development, computer architecture, design and support.
Amazon has opened a new service center in San José, from where it will provide support to small and medium companies who sell their products on the platform.
In 2009, Amazon started its Seller Support operations in Costa Rica with only 30 employees. Today, its new site - El Tobogán Corporate Center - now houses 900 employees.The company has invested close to $10 million dollars in its new building in San Jose.
Last year the country attracted 40 new foreign direct investment projects, which generated around $2.165 billion.
Jorge Sequeira, General Director of the Costa Rican Coalition of Development Initiatives explained that "... 'themultinational companies attracted with the support of CINDE generated 20% of formal net jobs in the country and 23% of total employment generated by private companies in 2017. It is important to note that the growth rate of employment in multinationals was 7.8%, 3.7 times more than the average of the country which reported growth of 2.1%'."
In 2016 44% of foreign direct investment in the region was concentrated in Panama, and a fourth consecutive year of increases was recorded, with 16%, while Costa Rica received 27% and increased by only 1.1%.
From chapter I of the report "Flows of FDI in Latin America and the Caribbean", by the ECLAC:
FDI into Central America grew by 3.7% in 2016 and totaled 11,833 million dollars.The increase in investments to the two main recipients of the subregion -Panama, which recieved 44%, and Costa Rica, 27%- compensated for the drop in FDI to the other Central American countries.
The company TransPerfect has announced that it will be opening a contact center in Alajuela to provide interpretation and translation services at an international level.
From a press release by Transperfect:
San José, Costa Rica, May 2, 2017 – TransPerfect, the world's largest privately held provider of translation services and technology solutions for global business, today announced the opening of a new contact center in Costa Rica. The facility will seat 120 new employees, most of whom are expected to be new hires from the greater San José area.
The Chinese multinational Midea, already present in South America, plans to invest $30 million in expanding and reaching out to markets in Mexico, Central America and the Andean region.
The company Midea, founded in 1968 in Guangdong, China, believes that there is "... a lot of room for expansion"in this region. This was explained to EFE by the Brazilian Joao Cláudio Guetter, president of the Latin American operation.