By STAFF REPORT
Nicaragua received US$968 million in foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2011, a sum that accounts for 13.3 percent of the Central American country’s annual GDP.
Nicaragua was followed distantly by Panama with 9.1% and Chile with 7 percent, according to Latin Business Chronicle. Nicaragua appears to have received highest amount of FDI among Central American countries in terms of FDI’s portion in the country’s GDP, the Chronicle noted.
Much of the foreign money was invested in Nicaragua’s energy, telecommunications and free zones sectors. It is not only the FDI that grew, according to the Central Bank of Nicaragua, the Central American country’s exports reached US$2,264 million in 2011, increasing 22.3 percent on the previous year.
Nicaragua, which saw its GDP grow 4.7 percent in 2011, hopes to maintain the same levels of economic performance in 2012 as well. According to its central bank, FDI inflow in the first quarter of 2012 reached US$289 million, an increase of 76 percent on the same period last year. In addition, exports of goods in the first half of the year showed a 9% increase.
Stable currency exchange policy and efforts to build a more favorable business climate seem to have helped Nicaragua sustain economic growth over the past few years.
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