The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development published its 2025 Foreign Direct Investment Regulatory Restrictiveness Index, finding that statutory restrictions across 106 economies remained broadly stable but increased marginally for a second consecutive year. The average score rose from 0.1192 in 2024 to 0.1194 in 2025, while the median was unchanged. Of the economies covered, 95 recorded no change, seven liberalised and four tightened, with the larger scale of tightening measures outweighing the more numerous liberalising reforms. Foreign equity limits accounted for 61% of measured restrictiveness, followed by other operational restrictions at 26%, economic screening at 10% and restrictions on key foreign personnel at 3%. Restrictiveness remained highest in the Middle East and North Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, and Sub-Saharan Africa, and was concentrated in media, real estate, transport, agriculture, fisheries and professional services. The OECD identified a longer-term slowdown in reform activity, with only 10% of covered economies changing their scores between 2024 and 2025. Security-related investment controls, which do not affect index scores, also expanded. Albania, Croatia, the Kyrgyz Republic and Ireland introduced new cross-sectoral frameworks, while 10 other economies revised, clarified or introduced security-related measures. The OECD called for remaining discriminatory barriers, particularly foreign equity limits, to be reviewed and for security screening to remain targeted, proportionate and transparent.

Original source