03 May 2016
Investment flows to offshore financial hubs, including offshore financial centers and special purpose entities (SPEs), were increasingly volatile in 2015, according to the latest UNCTAD Global Investment Trends Monitor.
The research shows that these flows, which are excluded from UNCTAD's foreign direct investment (FDI) statistics, declined but remain sizable.
The magnitude of quarterly flows through SPEs, in terms of absolute value, rose sharply compared with 2014, reaching the levels last registered in 2012-2013.
Meanwhile, investment flows to offshore financial centers continued to retreat from their recent high of $132 billion in 2013, but remained roughly in line with the flows of previous years.
An in-depth analysis of FDI trends will feature in the forthcoming World Investment Report 2016, to be published in June 2016.
