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The Global Location Trends 2019 report from IBM highlights Ontario as the top destination region in terms of jobs created based on incoming foreign direct investment (FDI). The report is unique in that it tracks decisions made at the project level and uses job creation data as a key indicator of the local economic impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) instead of merely using capital investment figures.

Ontario outpaced all other provinces and states including Alabama, Texas and Michigan with over 10,000 jobs created from FDI. Ontario’s largest city, Toronto, made up nearly half of that, leading all other metropolitan areas on the continent. Ottawa also made the list of top destinations.

Top FDI Destination Regions

Top FDI destination regions - 2018
Provinces & states Jobs created in (’000 jobs)
Ontario 10.1
Alabama 9.0
Tennessee 6.3
Illinois 6.1
Georgia 5.7
Ohio 5.4
Texas 5.3
Virginia 5.2
Indiana 4.8
Michigan 4.6

Top FDI Destination Metropolitan Areas

Top FDI destination metropolitan areas - 2018
Cities Jobs created in (’000 jobs)
Toronto 4.9
Chicago 4.2
Detroit 3.7
New York 3.1
Dallas 2.8
Montreal 2.5
Atlanta 2.2
Boston 1.6
Ottawa 1.4
Charlotte 1.2

Top Investing Countries and Sectors

The United States continues to be the top investor into Ontario followed by Ireland, the U.K., Japan, China, and Germany. The diversity of sectors investing in Ontario is very notable. The top investing sector in the province in 2018 was ICT followed by hospitality & tourism, wholesale & retail, transport equipment, business services, food & beverages and pharma, medical & healthcare.

The annual Global Location Trends executive report launches on September 25, 2019.

Access the 2019 Global Location Trends executive report provided by IBM

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