Colombia received less foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first half of the year compared with a year earlier as inflows destined for its booming oil and mining sector were crimped by weak global demand, central bank data showed on Monday.
In the first six months of the year, FDI fell 6.2% to $8.75 billion from the $9.33 billion it received in the same period last year. In full-year 2012, the $330 billion economy attracted $16.7 billion in direct investment from overseas.
FACT SHEET: Colombia FDI statistics
Improved security in recent years has turned Colombia into a hot-spot for foreign investment after a decade-long US-backed offensive battered Marxist rebels and right-wing paramilitary groups, reducing their numbers and making it safer to do business in the Andean country.
Inflows to the oil and mining sector, which accounted for 83% of total FDI in the first half, dropped 5.5% to $7.258 billion.
The government expects foreign direct investment to fall slightly from last year, for all of 2013. US investment bank JP Morgan last week also predicted a drop in FDI.
MORE: JP Morgan Predicts Fall In Colombia FDI In 2013
Money destined for portfolio investments shot up 73.4 percent from a year earlier to $2.752 billion.