Multinationals want stability in politics, taxation before investing

Investors want to see a series of reforms and improvements in Greece before placing their money in an economy which holds significant potential, according to two surveys presented at an investment conference on Tuesday in Athens.

Greece may well be an increasingly attractive destination for investments, but the absence of a stable legal and regulatory framework and the delays in justice are preventing foreign direct investments from reaching their potential. In 2018 FDI expanded by 12.5 percent from 2017 to reach 3.6 billion euros, rising for the third year in a row, per the Bank of Greece.

A survey of 40 CEOs at multinationals in Greece, presented by economics professor George Pagoulatos at the InvestGR forum, showed that what foreign companies want to see before they invest in Greece is economic, social and political stability, an investment-friendly tax system, faster judicial and arbitration procedures, speedy licensing and less bureaucracy, policies to employ, attract and train human resources, a state structure for the active attraction of private investment, better infrastructure, the encouragement of bigger business schemes, and the streamlining of the credit sector.

A Metron Analysis survey presented at the same forum showed that 60 percent of the chief executive officers of 35 multinationals in Greece say it is likely their corporation will implement further investments in the country, up from 53 percent in the 2018 survey.

The most attractive sectors for investors in Greece are tourism, food catering, education, the primary sector, energy, health services, transport and real estate.

Nevertheless there are several factors in the Greek economy that continue to raise obstacles to attracting investments and are rated negatively by the CEOs. The most important of these are: the administrative and taxation frameworks, the perception of corruption, the speed of delivery of justice, and the limited research and development.