Germany

Executive Summary

As Europe’s largest economy, Germany is a major destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) and has accumulated a vast stock of FDI over time.  Germany is consistently ranked by business consultancies and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) as one of the most attractive investment destinations based on its reliable infrastructure, highly skilled workforce, positive social climate, stable legal environment, and world-class research and development.

The United States is the leading source of non-European foreign investment in Germany.  Foreign investment in Germany was broadly stable during the period 2013-2016 (the most recent data available) and mainly originated from other European countries, the United States, and Japan.  FDI from emerging economies (particularly China) grew substantially over 2013-2016, albeit from a low level.

German legal, regulatory, and accounting systems can be complex and burdensome, but are generally transparent and consistent with developed-market norms.  Businesses enjoy considerable freedom within a well-regulated environment. Foreign and domestic investors are treated equally when it comes to investment incentives or the establishment and protection of real and intellectual property.  Foreign investors can fully rely on the legal system, which is efficient and sophisticated. At the same time, this system requires investors to closely track their legal obligations. New investors should ensure they have the necessary legal expertise, either in-house or outside counsel, to meet all requirements.

Germany has effective capital markets and relies heavily on its modern banking system.  Majority state-owned enterprises are generally limited to public utilities such as municipal water, energy, and national rail transportation.  The primary objectives of government policy are to create jobs and foster economic growth. Labor unions are powerful and play a generally constructive role in collective bargaining agreements, as well as on companies’ work councils.

German authorities continue efforts to fight money laundering and corruption.  The government supports responsible business conduct and German SMEs are increasingly aware of the need for due diligence.

The German government amended domestic investment screening provisions, effective June 2017, clarifying the scope for review and giving the government more time to conduct reviews, in reaction to an increasing number of acquisitions of German companies by foreign investors, particularly from China.  The amended provisions provide a clearer definition of sectors in which foreign investment can pose a “threat to public order and security,” including operators of critical infrastructure, developers of software to run critical infrastructure, telecommunications operators or companies involved in telecom surveillance, cloud computing network operators and service providers, and telematics companies.  All non-EU entities are now required to notify Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in writing of any acquisition of or significant investment in a German company active in these sectors. The new rules also extend the time to assess a cross-sector foreign investment from two to four months, and for investments in sensitive sectors, from one to three months, and introduce the possibility of retroactively initiating assessments for a period of five years after the conclusion of an acquisition.  Indirect acquisitions such as those through a Germany- or EU-based affiliate company are now also explicitly subject to the new rules. In 2018, the government further lowered the threshold for the screening of investments, allowing authorities to screen acquisitions by foreign entities of at least 10 percent of voting rights of German companies that operate critical infrastructure (down from 25 percent), as well as companies providing services related to critical infrastructure.  The amendment also added media companies to the list of sensitive businesses to which the lower threshold applies. German authorities strongly supported the European Union’s new framework to coordinate national security screening of foreign investments, which entered into force in April 2019.

Table 1: Key Metrics and Rankings

Netherlands

Executive Summary

The Netherlands consistently ranks among the world’s most competitive industrialized economies.  It offers an attractive business and investment climate and remains a welcoming location for business investment from the United States and elsewhere.

Strengths of the Dutch economy include the Netherlands’ stable political and macroeconomic climate, a highly developed financial sector, strategic location, well-educated and productive labor force, and high-quality physical and communications infrastructure.  Investors in the Netherlands take advantage of its highly competitive logistics, anchored by the largest seaport and fourth-largest airport in Europe. In telecommunications, the Netherlands has one of the highest internet penetrations in the European Union (EU) at 96 percent and hosts one of the largest data transport hubs in the world, the Amsterdam Internet Exchange.

The Netherlands is among the largest recipients and sources of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world and one of the largest historical recipients of direct investment from the United States.  This can be attributed to the Netherlands’ competitive economy, historically business-friendly tax climate, and many investment treaties containing investor protections. The Dutch economy has significant foreign direct investment in a wide range of sectors including logistics, information technology, and manufacturing.  Dutch tax policy continues to evolve in response to EU attempts to harmonize tax policy across member states.

In the wake of the worldwide financial crisis a decade ago, the Dutch government implemented significant reforms in key policy areas, including the labor market, the housing sector, the energy market, the pension system, and health care.  Dutch reform policies were crafted in close consultation with key stakeholders, including business associations, labor unions, and civil society groups. This consultative approach, often referred to as the Dutch “polder model,” is how Dutch policy is generally developed.

After years of recovery, with associated “catch-up” rates of economic growth, the macroeconomic outlook in the Netherlands is for a stable but low-growth economy.  The Dutch government projects a period of lower GDP growth of 1.5 percent in 2019 and 2020. Projected drivers of growth include increased government spending, as well as invigorated domestic consumption by households as unemployment reaches record lows.

• The Netherlands is a top destination for U.S. FDI abroad, holding just under USD 900 billion out of a total of USD 6 trillion total outbound U.S. investment – about 16 percent.
• Dutch investors contribute USD 367 billion FDI to the United States of the USD 4 trillion total inbound FDI– about 10 percent.

Table 1: Key Metrics and Rankings