List of countries by foreign direct investment outflows

This is the list of countries by flows of foreign direct investment (FDI) abroad. The list includes sovereign states and self-governing dependent territories based upon the ISO standard ISO 3166-1.

According to the World Bank, "Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) refers to direct investment equity flows in an economy. It is the sum of equity capital, reinvestment of earnings, and other capital. Direct investment is a category of cross-border investment associated with a resident in one economy having control or a significant degree of influence on the management of an enterprise that is resident in another economy. Ownership of 10 percent or more of the ordinary shares of voting stock is the criterion for determining the existence of a direct investment relationship. In the following table, WB figures shows net outflows of investment from the reporting economy to the rest of the world. Data are in current U.S. dollars."^[3]

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, "outward Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) flows record the value of cross-border direct investment transactions from the reporting economy during a year. Outward flows represent transactions that increase the investment that investors in the reporting economy have in enterprises in the destination country less any transactions that decrease the investment that investors in the reporting economy have in enterprises in the destination country.^[4] Net Outward FDI = Investments by resident parents in their affiliates abroad and investments (mostly loans) by resident fellow enterprises in other fellows abroad, where those fellows are ultimately controlled by a resident parent, minus reverse investments: investments (mostly loans) by foreign affiliates in their resident parents and by foreign fellow enterprises in resident fellows, where those fellows are ultimately controlled by a resident parent."^[5]