Foreign direct investments in Peru totaled $5 billion in the first half of 2012, according to the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, ECLAC.
Peru was the fourth biggest recipient of foreign direct investments in South America in the first six months of this year, behind Brazil, which brought in $43 billion, Chile at $12 billion and Colombia at $10 billion. Along with Peru, Argentina also received foreign direct investments of $5 billion.
In total, foreign direct investments in Latin America and the Caribbean totaled $94 billion in the first half of 2012, up 8 percent from the same period a year earlier, daily El Comercio reported.
“The increase in the FDI is explained by the stability and the economic dynamism in the majority of the countries and the high prices of raw materials, which continues to encourage investments in mining and hydrocarbons, particularly in South America,” the UN said.
Peru’s economy, which is expected to grow by about 6 percent this year, has been driven in recent years by private-sector investments. More recently, strong domestic demand is also boosting economic growth in the Andean nation.
