Page 27 - GEORptMar21

imminent in the country, with another lockdown set to follow.
It was during this period that the NBG intensified its foreign exchange interventions. As a result, $500mn in FX auctions was sold in the fourth quarter.
In a report published in December, Tao Zhang, deputy executive director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), noted that the need for interventions in Georgia would continue into 2021. On January 6, the NBG held its first foreign exchange auction, selling $30mn.
5.2 FDI
Georgia - FDI 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 Q1-Q3 2020*
FDI ($ mn)
1,022.9 1,039.2 1,837.0 1,728.8 1,652.6 1,978.3 1,306.3 1,310.8 719.0
FDI (% of GDP)
5.25 5.93 10.84 11.89 11.27 11.88 7.5 7
Source: Geostat, CEIC
FDI inflow to Georgia stabilises in Q2 after weak Q1
Second-quarter foreign direct investment in Georgia edged up by 0.5% y/y to $237.8mn, according to preliminary official data.
The FDI volume in the first half of the year decreased by $140.7mn y/y to $409.6mn, marking a 26% decline, the figures also showed.
Most FDI came from the UK (24.8%), followed by the Netherlands (22.4%) and Turkey (13.3%).
The share of FDI in the three major economic sectors reached 57.0% in Q2. The largest share was registered in the financial sector, reaching $78.1mn. Second was energy with $29.6mn and third was construction with $27.7mn. Notably, FDI in the financial sector soared by 628% y/y to $178mn in H1. Foreign investments in real estate also increased markedly, by 146% y/y to $42mn.
The highest ever foreign investment level in Georgia was recorded in 2017 at $1.96bn. Georgia's largest investor that year was Azerbaijan ($462mn), with the investment largely related to the construction of the second phase of a pipeline running from the Shah Deniz gas fields.
In 2018, foreign direct investment in Georgia decreased by 35.5% y/y to
27 GEORGIA Country Report March 2021 www.intellinews.com