Dear Members of the World Investment Network,
It is my pleasure to share with you
the Fifth
UNCTAD-OECD Report on G20 Investment Measures,
together with the accompanying Joint
Summary by WTO-OECD-UNCTAD on G20 Trade and Investment Measures.
The Report was prepared in response to the G20 Leaders’ latest request
made at their Summit meeting in Seoul on 11-12 November 2010, when they
reaffirmed the extension of their standstill commitment to resist protectionism
until the end of 2013 and asked the WTO, OECD, and UNCTAD to continue monitoring
the situation and to report publicly on a semi-annual basis.
This joint UNCTAD-OECD report covers
measures taken in the period from mid-October 2010 until end-April 2011.
It finds that during the reporting period the majority of new investment
measures taken by G20 governments eliminated restrictions to international
investment and improved clarity for foreign investors. In that context,
the fifth report confirms the findings of earlier joint reports on G20
investment measures, issued in 2010 (March, June and November) and 2009
(September).
This compares with the global picture
(as reported in UNCTAD’s
Investment Policy Monitor, issued
earlier this month), where the last six months have seen an increase in
measures that restrict or regulate foreign investment to 35 percent of
all policy measures. This is the highest percentage since 1992, when UNCTAD
first published data on this issue and points to a widening dichotomy between
liberalization and regulation in investment policymaking worldwide.
The policy developments covered by the
present report took place in a situation where, unlike global GDP and trade
flows, global investment flows have not recovered to their pre-crisis level.
Moreover a number of risks to a full FDI recovery persist, including protectionist
pressures. (For most recent data see UNCTAD’s
Global Investment Trends Monitor,
issued in April 2011). Allow me also to draw your attention to our
forthcoming World Investment Report 2011 to be launched on
26 July 2011, which will offer final data on global FDI policies and flows
for 2010.
With kind regards,
James X. Zhan
Director
Investment & Enterprise
Division
United Nations Conference
on Trade & Development
Palais des Nations, Geneva
Tel: +41 22 9175797
www.unctad.org/diae
WIR
