Mexico attracted 41 billion dollars in foreign direct investment in 2025 and climbed from 11th to 10th place among the largest global recipients, according to the World Investment Report 2026 by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. This advance positions the country among the ten most attractive economies for foreign capital, surpassing India with 39 billion dollars, Australia with 35 billion, and Saudi Arabia with 33 billion.
The global ranking is led by the United States with 277 billion dollars, followed by Singapore with 151 billion, Hong Kong with 116 billion, China with 105 billion, and Brazil with 77 billion. In Latin America, Mexico remains the second largest FDI recipient after Brazil.
The positive number, however, comes with a specific warning from UNCTAD. The increase in FDI did not translate into a wave of new plants. Greenfield projects, meaning investment announcements in new productive capacities, fell from approximately 44 billion to 24 billion dollars, a reduction of almost 45%. What grew was the reinvestment of profits and the expansion of existing operations, not the arrival of new factories.
The organization identifies commercial uncertainty in North America as the main factor behind this caution. Companies that had considered relocating to Mexico or expanding their manufacturing presence postponed or reduced decisions due to volatility in US trade policy and the review process of the USMCA, whose July 1 deadline passed without formal renewal.
UNCTAD also warns that to harness the potential of nearshoring, proximity to the United States and the USMCA framework are not enough. Mexico needs to strengthen its local supplier chain, human capital, transport infrastructure, and energy capacity. Without concrete advances on these fronts, investment decisions may remain on indefinite pause.
The global context adds another layer of complexity. Global FDI grew 6% in 2025, reaching 1.6 trillion dollars, but the recovery was uneven. Flows to developed economies increased by 11%, while in developing economies they only grew by 2%. Growth was concentrated in megaprojects of data centers linked to artificial intelligence, and in semiconductors, oil, and gas. Mexico does not have significant issuers in any of these high-growth categories within its FDI profile.
For the next+ team, the strategic reading of the UNCTAD report is quite accurate: Mexico is attracting more capital than before, but the way it attracts it has changed. Shifting from investment in new plants to reinvestment of profits in existing operations describes a market where already established companies continue to bet on the country, but those not yet in wait. This waiting has a concrete cost in jobs, infrastructure, and the development of local value chains that are not generated by reinvestments. For nearshoring to become the productive transformation its projections promised, Mexico needs to send clear signals of regulatory and commercial certainty that it is currently failing to convey with sufficient clarity. UNCTAD's top 10 is a good headline. The 45% drop in greenfield projects is the real story.