Latin America Foreign Investment 2025: Why the Outbound Figure Matters Most
Latin America foreign investment held firm in 2025. Foreign direct investment into Latin America and the Caribbean reached US$194 billion, a 1.7% rise and a third consecutive year of growth, according to the UN’s Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL).
Where the money went
Brazil and Mexico dominated the inflows, together drawing 62% of the region’s total — US$78 billion and US$43 billion respectively. The United States and Europe supplied two-thirds of the capital, at 35% and 32%. Chile, Peru, Colombia and Guyana followed at a distance.
By sector, services led with 53% of investment, ahead of manufacturing at 31% and natural resources at 16%. CEPAL noted that most of South and Central America recorded higher inflows, while results across the Caribbean were more uneven.
The trend beneath the headline
The headline figure tells one story. A quieter one sits beneath it: Latin American companies invested US$62 billion abroad in 2025, up 19.3% — the second-highest level since 2010. The region’s multinationals, the «multilatinas,» are no longer simply recipients of foreign capital. They are increasingly exporters of it, expanding into Europe, North America and beyond.
That outbound shift is the trend worth watching into 2026. As more Latin American companies move into English-speaking markets, and as foreign investors deepen their presence in the region, the documentation underpinning these deals only grows in importance.
Contracts, financial statements and investor communications must read as clearly and credibly in English as they do in Spanish or Portuguese. As cross-border activity deepens, accurate business and financial translation — and precise legal translation of the contracts behind each deal — becomes a practical part of doing business across borders.
Foreign direct investment into Latin America and the Caribbean reached US$194 billion in 2025, a 1.7% rise and a third consecutive year of growth, according to the UN’s Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL).
Brazil and Mexico dominated the inflows, together drawing 62% of the region’s total — US$78 billion and US$43 billion respectively. The United States and Europe supplied two-thirds of the capital, at 35% and 32%. By sector, services led with 53% of investment, ahead of manufacturing (31%) and natural resources (16%).
The headline figure tells one story. A quieter one sits beneath it: Latin American companies invested US$62 billion abroad in 2025, up 19.3% — the second-highest level since 2010. The region’s multinationals, the «multilatinas,» are no longer simply recipients of foreign capital. They are increasingly exporters of it, expanding into Europe, North America and beyond.
That outbound shift is the trend worth watching. As more Latin American companies move into English-speaking markets, the demand grows for accurate translation of the contracts, financial statements and investor communications that cross-border expansion depends on — making professional business and financial translation a practical part of doing business across borders.
