Call for FDI to ‘reboot’ region after six years of decline

Lifting of sanctions on Iran also a priority for recovery, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

The removal of sanctions on Iran and stronger global growth are needed to attract more foreign direct investment to the region, which fell last year for the sixth year in a row, a senior UN official said.

Foreign direct investment (FDI) to countries in West Asia fell 4 per cent to US$43 billion in 2014 from a year earlier, owing to regional conflicts and repercussions of the global financial crisis, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad).

West Asia’s share of global FDI was 3.5 per cent last year

“Harvesting peace and economic inclusion of Iran are important levers for recovery and rebooting of the Middle East as an exciting destination for investment,” said Mukhisa Kituyi, the secretary general of Unctad. “The opportunities of reconstructing and unleashing the economy of Iran, for example, are phenomenal.”

Countries in the region can take part in the reconstruction of Iran, providing both services and financial means to rebuild the country ravaged by decades of sanctions because of its nuclear ambitions, he added.

The UAE’s economy, for example, could reap $13bn from the lifting of sanctions on Iran, as trade between the two countries rises between now and 2018, according to IMF forecasts.

That is equivalent to a 1 per cent gain in real GDP growth each year over the next three years, according to the IMF’s annual report on the UAE economy.

In 2013, Iran accounted for 12 per cent of the UAE’s non-oil exports, valued at $12bn that year. Most of this came in the form of re-exports traded through Dubai’s Jebel Ali Port.

Another hurdle to increasing FDI flows into the region is global growth.

Growth across the world is set to weaken, with the IMF for the second time this year trimming its forecast to 3.1 per cent owing to the slowdown in China and weaker commodity prices. The global economy, which grew 3.4 per cent last year, is set to rebound to 3.6 per cent next year, according to the IMF forecasts.

“The global recovery gaining momentum will have a trigger effect and vibrancy even in the Middle East as a destination of value-added services and component manufacturing,” said Mr Kituyi.

The slowing global growth is taking place at a time when world trade is growing slower than global GDP for the first time since the Second World War.

The World Trade Organisation has revised down its forecast for global trade growth to 2.8 per cent this year, the fourth consecutive year with trade growth below 3 per cent.