Argentina

Investing

FDI in figures

Argentina is ranked 4th among the South American countries attracting most FDI flows (behind Colombia, Brazil and Chile). The three main countries which invest in Argentina are: the United States, Spain and France.

Foreign Direct Investment	2004	2005	2006
FDI of inward flow (millions USD)	4,584	5,008	4,809
FDI inward stock (millions USD)	n.c.	n.c.	58,604.0
Performance Index*, world ranking	90	82	83
Potential Index**, world ranking	66	64	n.c.
Number of Greenfield investments	74	41	48
FDI inwards (in % of GFCF)	15.6	12.7	9.6
FDI stock (in % of GDP)	n.c.	n.c.	27.4

Source: UNCTAD, World Investment Report

Note: * The UNCTAD Inward FDI Performance index is based on a ratio of the country's share in global FDI inflows and its share in global GDP. ** The UNCTAD Inward FDI Potential index is based on 12 economic and structural variables such as GDP, foreign trade, FDI, infrastructures, energy use, R&D, education, country risk.

Why you should choose Argentina

Strong points: Wealth of raw materials, good level of education, an indicator of human development appreciably above the average for Latin America, strong growth for several years now. The undervaluation of the peso supports local production against foreign competition and makes Argentine products more competitive within Mercosur.
Weak points: The banking sector is fragile and under-capitalized; investments in energy are insufficient; inflation is high.
Government measures to motivate or restrict FDI: The government has established various measures to encourage foreign investment in the form of incentives to invest in capital goods and infrastructures, finance programs, promoting capabilities (employment, quality among others), encouraging innovation and technological development, geographical incentives and sectorial investments.
For further information, consult the ProsperAr website.
Bilateral investment conventions signed by Argentina: Argentina has signed bilateral agreements on investments with 60 countries.
To see the list of countries, click here.
To see the conventions, click here.

Administrative procedures relative to foreign investment

Freedom of establishment: Yes
Acquisition of holdings: All sectors of the economy are open to foreign investors, on an equal footing with national investors.
The investment regime is a liberal regime. Foreign investment is not subject to any authorization or declaration, whatever the amount or the activity envisaged, and even if this means taking a majority share in the capital of a local company.
Obligation to declare: In principle, no declaration.
Competent organization for the declaration
Requests for specific authorizations: There is no declaration, in principle, except for large projects which require the agreement of the competent ministry. For example: the TGV (high speed train) with the Ministry of Infrastructure.