European Investment Monitor

The cutbacks meant that US corporations' market share of new European investment shrank from 44% in 2000to 37% last year: the lowest since 1997. The UK--traditionally the most popular destination for US capital--was the hardest market. The number of new US investments into the country dropped to 377 in 2001 from 575 a year previously. And London saw a 48% slump in US deals, although it remained the most popular location in Europe.

In percentage terms Switzerland fared even worse than the UK with a 47% cut in activity from 45 projects in 2000 to 24 in 2001. Ireland saw a 46% fall; the Netherlands 37% and France 25%/

James Glennon, a US-based location strategy professional in Ernst & Young's Real Estate Advisory Services practice said: 'US corporate investment in Europe clearly remains critical for the region's economic development but the sharp decline last year in the US economy, particularly in the telecom and high tech sectors, forced many US multinationals to cut back their plans for investment in European projects.'