Expenditures by foreign direct investors to acquire, establish, or expand U.S. businesses totaled $373.4 billion in 2016. Spending was down 15 percent from $439.6 billion in 2015, but was above the annual average of $350.0 billion for 2014-2015, and was well above the annual average of $226.0 billion for 2006-2008. As in previous years, expenditures to acquire existing businesses accounted for a large majority of the total. With this release, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) is introducing new tables that present planned expenditures for greenfield investments—investments to either establish a new U.S. business or to expand an existing foreign-owned U.S. business—both as they were reported when the investment was initiated and as they were reported a year later. New Investment by Foreign Direct Investors by Type, 1994-2016 In 2016, expenditures for acquisitions were $365.7 billion, expenditures to establish new U.S. businesses were $5.6 billion, and expenditures to expand existing foreign-owned businesses were $2.2 billion. Planned total expenditures, which include both first-year (2016) and planned future expenditures, were $387.7 billion. Expenditures by industry, country, and state in 2016 By industry, expenditures for new direct investment were distributed widely. Expenditures in manufacturing, $129.4 billion, accounted for more than one third of total expenditures, the largest share among major industries. Within manufacturing, expenditures were largest in chemicals, $64.7 billion. There were also notable expenditures in professional, scientific, and technical services ($59.1 billion) and in finance and insurance ($47.9 billion). By country of ultimate beneficial owner (UBO), a small number of countries accounted for most of the investment. The largest source country was Canada, with expenditures of $58.5 billion. There were also substantial expenditures from the United Kingdom ($54.5 billion), Ireland ($35.4 billion), and Switzerland ($34.9 billion). By region, about one-half of the new investment in 2016 was from Europe and nearly one-quarter was from the Asia and Pacific region. By U.S. state, the largest expenditures were for U.S. businesses in California ($64.7 billion), followed by Illinois ($41.3 billion). Greenfield expenditures Greenfield investment expenditures were $7.7 billion in 2016. Total planned greenfield expenditures for investment initiated in 2016, which include both first-year expenditures and planned spending in other years, were $22.0 billion. By U.S. industry, greenfield expenditures in 2016 were largest in real estate and rental and leasing at $1.6 billion, accounting for 21 percent of total greenfield expenditures. By U.S. state, greenfield expenditures in 2016 were largest in California ($1.3 billion) and New York ($1.2 billion). Employment by newly acquired, established, or expanded foreign-owned businesses In 2016, newly acquired, established, or expanded foreign-owned businesses in the United States employed 480,800 workers. Total planned employment, which includes the current employment of acquired enterprises, the planned employment of newly established business enterprises when fully operational, and the planned employment associated with expansions, was 499,700. Current employment of acquired enterprises, a component of total planned employment, was 476,600. Among major industries in 2016, manufacturing accounted for the largest number of employees at 162,900, followed by retail trade (110,600). By country of UBO, Canada accounted for the largest number of employees at 105,900, followed by the United Kingdom (51,100) and China (49,400). By U.S. state, Florida accounted for the largest number of employees at 66,000, followed by California (60,000), and Texas (57,600). New Statistics on Planned and Actual Expenditures for Greenfield Investments With today’s release, BEA is introducing new statistics on planned expenditures for greenfield investments that were reported when the investment was initiated and updated a year later. These statistics can help answer questions about whether greenfield projects are completed and whether there are significant differences between planned and actual costs. The new statistics are presented by industry, country, state, and type of investment and are available on BEA’s web site. Updates to 2014 and 2015 Expenditures for New Foreign Direct Investment in the United States
Millions of dollars
Previously Published Estimate Revised Estimate
2014      
First-year expenditures   250,581 260,487
      U.S. businesses acquired   235,799 242,580
      U.S. businesses established   12,473 14,183
      U.S. businesses expanded   2,309 3,724
Planned total expenditures   275,767 294,268
      U.S. businesses acquired   235,799 242,580
      U.S. businesses established   33,516 40,559
      U.S. businesses expanded   6,453 11,129
2015
   First-year expenditures 420,691 439,563
      U.S. businesses acquired 408,056 425,788
      U.S. businesses established 11,249 10,739
      U.S. businesses expanded 1,387 3,037
   Planned total expenditures 439,209 460,569
      U.S. businesses acquired 408,056 425,788
      U.S. businesses established 24,509 24,731
      U.S. businesses expanded 6,644 10,051