Expenditures by foreign direct investors to acquire, establish and expand U.S. businesses totaled $151 billion in 2024—a decrease from $176 billion in 2023. That’s according to the preliminary stats released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Ireland and Canada were countries with largest investment with Ireland investing about $30.1 billion, followed by Canada at $23.9 billion in 2024. These investments also generated jobs in the U.S.
Ireland (43,100) and Canada (37,500) accounted for the largest number of current employees by country.
The preliminary stats come at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump promised to strike Canada with a 35% blanket import tariff on Aug. 1 in a letter to the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, published on Truth Social.
By region, Europe contributed the most new investment, $96.7 billion, or 64% of all new investment in 2024.
The investment by foreign investors also employed 204,200 employees in the same year. Manufacturing sector led the new direct investments and accounted for 44.9% of total expenditures-which totals to $67.7 billion. The other sectors with significant expenditures were finance/insurance and utilities.
Texas led the state comparison when it came to receiving most investment in 2024, with $22.8 billion in investment expenditure, followed by Georgia with $16.3 billion and California with $12.9 billion.