TN gets ₹8,364 crore FDI in 2021, investment increased by 18.43%

Foreign direct investments (FDI) into Tamil Nadu between April and September 2021 have increased by 18.43 per cent compared to the same period last year.

The total FDI into Tamil Nadu between April and September this year was ₹8,364 crore, while it was only ₹7,062 crore in the same period last year.

Though there is a considerable increase in the FDI into Tamil Nadu, the share of the state remains at four per cent as compared to the same period previous year.

Again despite the state having seen an increase in the FDI since April this year, Tamil Nadu is far behind Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Delhi in wooing FDI, according to the latest data released by the Union Commerce Ministry for the first two quarters.

Maharashtra cornered 26 per cent of the total FDIs into the country, followed by Gujarat and Karnataka with 23 per cent each. Delhi was able to corner 13 per cent of the FDIs and Tamil Nadu with four per cent. The percentage was calculated based on the FDIs received from October 2019 to September 2021.

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Karnataka has wooed ₹1.02 lakh crore worth FDIs in the two quarters of the present financial year. Maharashtra has received FDIs worth ₹48,633 crore.

Sources said that Tamil Nadu could woo less foreign investments as the state faced Assembly elections and there was also a change in the government, with DMK winning the elections.

Government officials said that the data might not be a correct reflection of the investments happening in the state.

“Many companies head-quartered in places like the Delhi-NCR Region and Mumbai that are investing in Tamil Nadu, get recorded at the local regional office of RBI,” the official contended.

“The intense lockdown for nearly one quarter of the last financial year affected investments and coupled with that is the Assembly elections. Since December, all political parties have gone on the election mode and many companies have decided to wait and watch for the elections to get over,” said the official.

In the financial year ending March 31, 2021, a total of ₹81,722 crore had been received as FDI inflows into the country. The year marked an increase of 10 per cent over the previous year’s FDI inflows as per the data.

Mauritius and Singapore were the main source of foreign investments into the country.

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Nearly 50 per cent of the all FDI inflows were from these two countries with Mauritius topping with 28.01 per cent and Singapore 21.73 per cent. The US came a distant third with 8.23 per cent and Netherlands and Japan contributing nearly seven per cent each.

Services sector cornered 16 per cent of the investments. Services include finances banking, insurance, business outsourcing, research and development, courier, technology testing, and analysis. Computer software and hardware cornered 13 percent of the investments.