London is European city of the future in foreign direct investment rankings

In a study of the most promising investment locations in Europe, fDi magazine has crowned London and Nordrhein-Westfalen in Germany as respective winners of the European City and Region of the Future 2014/15 titles.

London demonstrated a clear strategy for attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) and ranked first place in the economic potential category for major European cities. The city also ranked second in the infrastructure category, in part due to its forthcoming crossrail project – the largest civil engineering project in Europe.

Among large European regions Nordrhein-Westfalen ranked first, rising six places from the previous ranking in 2012/13. The region also ranked third in economic potential and second in human capital.

Helsinki emerged as a new top entry in the top 25 European cities category, ranking second. Finland’s capital has been receiving increased attention for its efforts to attract FDI and scored particularly well for FDI strategy.

The Dutch city of Eindhoven was also a new entry to the top 25, ranking third. The city ranked first in the FDI strategy category for small European cities and fourth in the infrastructure category.

Courtney Fingar, Editor-in-Chief of fDi magazine, says it is a challenging time for FDI in Europe: “With sluggish growth in many of the major economies and continuing ill effects from the Eurozone crises of last year, inflows into the region have declined. That makes it crucial for Europe’s cities and regions to take a proactive stance towards FDI promotion and to ensure their investment environments are as competitive as possible.”