A new, major publication – analysing the level of foreign investment coming into the UK and Europe – has highlighted Oxfordshire and the city of Oxford’s continued success and ability to attract companies to the area.
fDi Intelligence – part of the Financial Times – each February publishes a flagship journal and set of rankings, namely ‘European Cities & Regions of the Future’ with its published data benchmarking European cities and regions according to their economic, financial and business strengths.
In its 2024 publication, released on 15 February, fDi Intelligence highlighted Oxfordshire and Oxford’s strengths in being able to secure overseas investment, in particular highlighting the area’s strategic approach to garnering strong international interest, as well as showcasing its access to talent and lifestyle for those moving to the area.
The main accolade sees Oxfordshire, through the work of OxLEP, secure first place in developing a foreign direct investment strategy for its respective geographical area – a position held previously by the county earlier this decade.
The report highlighted Oxfordshire and Oxford as follows:
Oxfordshire accolades:
fDi's Local Enterprise Partnerships of the Future 2024 category:
- Foreign direct investment strategy – ranked first.
- Human capital and lifestyle – ranked sixth.
- Economic potential – ranked seventh.
- Overall – ranked tenth.
Oxford accolades:
fDi’s Small European Cities of the Future 2024 category:
- Human capital and lifestyle – ranked second.
- Overall – ranked tenth.
The fDi Intelligence report follows a continued, wider positive trend for the county with a healthy level of foreign investment secured for Oxfordshire in recent times.
Since 2017, OxLEP – working alongside the Department for Business and Trade – have helped to attract 295 foreign direct investments into the county, leading to around 6,000 jobs being created or safeguarded.
In addition, in 2022, fDi Intelligence listed Oxfordshire as being the highest-ranking Local Enterprise Partnership for foreign direct investment strategy.
Nigel Tipple – Chief Executive of OxLEP – said: “We are delighted to see the county score highly once again across multiple strands of the fDi Intelligence publication.
“It further highlights the importance of local economies maintaining strong overseas investment interest, particularly during a difficult economic period.
“Such investment ultimately finds its way across our local economy, benefiting thousands of people through new jobs, opportunities and even wider investment.
“As the Local Enterprise Partnership representing Oxfordshire, we have always collaborated closely with many stakeholders – including our world-leading business and science parks – to ensure that we position the county favourably with international investors and those key sectors where Oxfordshire garners a strong, global reputation.
“All of this activity helps to ensure that Oxfordshire remains a location very much in the minds of global innovators, investors and major emerging businesses, with the county being able to provide access to exceptional talent – particularly those with the most innovative and entrepreneurial minds.”
To underline their ongoing commitment to supporting healthy levels of inward investment into Oxfordshire, in the coming months, OxLEP will be launching a new digital platform that will target specific international territories showcasing the county’s many world-leading sectors including; fusion, digital health, life sciences and tourism.
The digital platform will also benefit from an interactive digital map, which will provide up-to-date details of Oxfordshire’s innovation ecosystem, highlighting sector clusters and helping to demonstrate where intellectual capital is located within the county.
