Ranked: Top Sectors for Global Foreign Direct InvestmentKey TakeawaysCompanies announced nearly $1.1 trillion in global greenfield investment in 2025.Communications attracted $346 billion, overtaking renewable energy as the leading sector.Semiconductors ranked third with a record $138 billion in foreign investment.Despite heightened trade tensions and turbulence in international markets, companies announced more than $1 trillion in greenfield foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in 2025.This visualization ranks the top 10 sectors for global FDI in 2025 based on project announcements from fDi Markets.The figures include only greenfield FDI involving fresh capital investment. Mergers and acquisitions and intercompany loans are excluded.Communications and RenewablesCommunications became the largest destination for greenfield FDI in 2025, attracting $346 billion in capital investment. Renewable energy followed with $200 billion.Together, the two sectors accounted for half of all greenfield FDI announced during the year.The following table ranks the top 10 sectors by total capital investment attracted in 2025.RankSectorCapital Investment in 2025 (billions $)1Communications3462Renewable energy2003Semiconductors1384Real estate1125Metals646Coal, oil & gas617Transportation & Warehousing588Software & IT services399Chemicals3510Automotive Manufacturing32Communications recorded 88% year-over-year FDI growth across 812 projects. This included 57 megaprojects valued at more than $1 billion in capital expenditure.Renewable energy fell to second place after leading all sectors in FDI for six consecutive years from 2019 to 2024.Investment in the sector declined by about one-quarter from $264 billion in 2024 as major industrial powers, including the U.S. and European Union, shifted their policy priorities.Semiconductor Investment Hits a RecordSemiconductors attracted $138 billion in 2025, the sector’s highest total on record and an increase of more than 10% from 2024.New semiconductor foundries are cropping up as companies seek to diversify their supply chains. Major chipmakers such as Intel and TSMC were among the firms making large capital expenditure pledges.However, investment remained highly concentrated. North America and the Asia-Pacific region received 97.5% of all greenfield semiconductor FDI.Other Sectors Attracting FDIReal estate was the only other sector to attract more than $100 billion in 2025. Investment reached $112 billion, its highest level since 2018, following five consecutive years of growth.The sector’s 2025 total was roughly 15.7% higher than in 2024.Meanwhile, foreign investment in coal, oil, and gas declined 31.3% to $61 billion. This marked the sector’s second consecutive annual decline.Transportation and warehousing attracted $58 billion following modest growth, with announced projects expected to create nearly 145,000 jobs.Learn More on the Voronoi App To see how each sector’s investment changed from 2024, read The Top 10 Sectors for Foreign Direct Investment on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.