Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Georgia increased 58% year-to-year in the fourth quarter of 2011 to USD 337 million, according to preliminary figures released by the state statistics office, Geostat, on March 9.

FDI in the first quarter of 2011 was USD 173.7 million, increasing to USD 203.4 million in the second quarter and going up to USD 266 million in the third quarter – all figures are preliminary, which Geostat said, are subject to revision.

Most of the FDI in the fourth quarter of 2011 came from companies registered in the Netherlands – USD 78.7 million, followed by Luxemburg with USD 33.4 million; the United States – USD 32.8 million; Belize – USD 31 million; the British Virgin Islands – USD 27 million; Japan – USD 17.3 million; Cyprus – USD 13.5 million; Russia – USD 13 million; Austria – USD 9.8 million.

USD 51.6 million FDI is attributed in the Geostat figures to “international organizations.”

Energy sector attracted most of the FDI in the fourth quarter of 2011 – USD 79.1 million, followed by transportation and communication with USD 56.6 million; financial sector - USD 53.9 million; processing industry – USD 53.2 million; real estate – USD 44.7 million; mining – USD 24.4 million; agriculture – USD 4.4 million; construction – USD 3.7 million.