London loses title as Europe's top investment destination

PARIS, France - For the first time in 15 years, the French capital managed to outdo London to become Europe’s most attractive destination for foreign investors.

According to an Ernst & Young survey for 2017, Paris has overtaken London as the favourite investment destination for foreign investors across Europe.

Since the EY report began in 2003, this is the first time Paris has outdone London, with the survey showing that the French capital topped for foreign direct investment by 37 percent of businesses.

The company said that the rankings were based on a survey of 502 companies and data from EY and IBM covering 2017.

The report noted that the change in the continent’s pecking order is a sign of the impact of both Brexit and the “Macron effect.”

Berlin was ranked as Europe’s third most attractive investment destination and Frankfurt scored the fourth spot.

However, Britain as a whole remained Europe’s top destination for foreign direct investment in 2017, with 1,205 of the 6,653 new FDI projects in Europe.

It scored ahead of Germany’s 1,124 projects and France’s 1,019 projects.

However, the report said that France achieved a significant 31 percent increase in number in a single year, while the number of investment into Britain was 6 percent higher than in 2016, showing a slowdown in growth.

The report pointed out, “The U.K. is feeling the effect of Brexit.”

It also noted, “Investment slowed after the 2008 financial crisis, but France is now in catch-up mode, and a beneficiary of Brexit,” citing the French President Emmanuel Macron’s reforms to make the labour market more flexible.