The UK has attracted more foreign investment than any of its European neighbours in the first six months of this year, winning more than a fifth of all investment projects in Europe, research from accountancy firm and business adviser Ernst & Young has found.

The UK has attracted more foreign investment than any of its European neighbours in the first six months of this year, winning more than a fifth of all investment projects in Europe, research from accountancy firm and business adviser Ernst & Young (E&Y)  has found.

According to E&Y’s European Investment Monitor, the UK won 315 new investment projects in the first half of this year, some 22 per cent of all projects in Europe, and up from a 21 per cent share a year ago.

‘It is too early to say whether this is a one-off for the UK – but it is stabilising its overall market share after a long period of decline,’ says Nigel Wilcock, E&Y’s regional development director. ‘The increase was driven predominantly by sales and marketing-based projects into Europe, which were up 80 per cent. These activities have continued to focus on the big three locations of UK, Germany and France.’

Most investment derived from the US, but companies from India have caught up to become the second-biggest investors in the UK as they strive to expand their business interests.

The research found that US companies instigated 145 investment projects in the UK in the first half of this year, up from 102 a year ago. Indian businesses, meanwhile, nearly trebled the number of projects in the UK to 21 from eight a year earlier.

Wilcock observes that the UK’s capital has seen a lot of activity during this period. ‘London in particular has really benefited from this upsurge in activity announcing more projects – 133 – than every European country in its entirety except France,’ he says.