Uruguay's foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) was −US$534.61 million in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 30.99% from −US$774.7 million in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | −US$534.61 million | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | −US$1.09 billion | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | −US$774.7 million | 2015 |
| Highest | US$2.57 billion | 2024 |
| Lowest | −US$3.07 billion | 2023 |
| Average since 2016 | −US$432.84 million | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | −US$128.8 million |
What the numbers say
In 2025, Uruguay's foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) fell US$3.1 billion on 2024 (from US$2.57 billion to −US$534.61 million).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +US$90.82 million and a typical year strayed about US$1.35 billion from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was US$5.64 billion in 2024 and the biggest yearly fall was US$3.1 billion in 2025. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 14% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, Uruguay had the 65th highest value of the 136 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
Closest to Uruguay in the 2025 ranking
- Moldova — 61st of 136: −US$359.92 million
- El Salvador — 62nd of 136: −US$445.44 million
- Malawi — 63rd of 136: −US$485.56 million
- Montenegro — 65th of 136: −US$601.07 million
- Armenia — 66th of 136: −US$634.02 million
- Kenya — 67th of 136: −US$680.56 million
What this measures
Foreign direct investment is a category of cross-border investment associated with a resident in one economy having control or a significant degree of influence on the management of an enterprise that is resident in another economy. Ownership of 10 percent or more of the voting power is evidence of a direct investment relationship. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.
All 44 values
| Year | Foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | -534,614,303 |
| 2024 | 2,569,983,756 |
| 2023 | -3,072,898,347 |
| 2022 | -2,878,803,604 |
| 2021 | -2,545,753,145 |
| 2020 | -1,093,834,846 |
| 2019 | -1,362,426,046 |
| 2018 | 729,237,271 |
| 2017 | 2,037,341,254 |
| 2016 | 1,823,407,171 |
Foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) in nearby economies
- Antigua and Barbuda — −US$291.29 million (2025)
- Argentina — −US$1.62 billion (2025)
- Aruba — US$192.34 million (2023)
- Bahamas, The — −US$77.61 million (2024)
- Barbados — −US$207.83 million (2017)
- Belize — US$1.16 million (2025)
- Bolivia — −US$336.18 million (2025)
- Brazil — −US$47.5 billion (2025)
- Chile — −US$5.83 billion (2025)
- Colombia
More economic policy & debt data for Uruguay
- Total reserves, including gold (current US$) — US$18.99 billion (2025)
- Total reserves, excluding gold (current US$) — US$18.97 billion (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current US$) — US$15.02 billion (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (current LCU) — 618.82 billion (2025)
- General government final consumption expenditure (% of GDP) — 17.6% (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (current US$) — US$67.76 billion (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (current LCU) — 2.79 trillion (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant 2015 US$) — US$53.61 billion (2025)
- Final consumption expenditure (constant LCU)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Uruguay's foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP)?
- −US$534.61 million in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1978?
- It is down 315.07% from −US$128.8 million in 1978. The highest value was US$2.57 billion in 2024 and the lowest −US$3.07 billion in 2023.
- How does Uruguay rank?
- 65th highest of 136 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) unusual for Uruguay?
- In 2025, Uruguay's foreign direct investment, net (current US$, BoP) fell US$3.1 billion on 2024 (from US$2.57 billion to −US$534.61 million). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +US$90.82 million and a typical year strayed about US$1.35 billion from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was unusually large compared with the rest of the record.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator BN.KLT.DINV.CD, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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