Over 20,000 foreign companies have already invested in NRW and control their German or European activities from here.
These include global concerns such as 3M, BP, Ericsson, Ford, Huawei, QVC, UPS, Toyota and Vodafone. They make NRW the No. 1 investment location in Germany. Foreign companies have thus become an important employer in the state, providing jobs for about 1.3 million people.
Strong business location for foreign direct investments
NRW is the No. 1 region for foreign capital in Germany. With 191.8 billion euros at the end of 2020, the state recorded the highest percentage (22.7 percent) of all 16 federal states of direct investments in Germany, which totaled 845.1 billion euros.
Volume of foreign direct investments in Germany 2020 (in EUR billion)
Foreign companies by federal states 2021 (in percent)
International companies in NRW at a glance
Netherlands / 4,000 companies
e.g. Lyondell Bassell Industries, Demcon, Picnic, Primagas, Refresco, Seacon Logistics, 247 Tailor Steel
UK / 1,700 companies
e.g. BP, Computacenter, Dyson, Lush, Vodafone
USA / 1,700 companies
e.g. 3M, Amazon, FedEx, Ford, Medtronic, QVC, TJC (TK Maxx), UPS
Switzerland / 1,400 companies
e.g. Keramag, Lindt & Sprüngli, Lonza, Oerlikon, Rolex
China* / 1,200 companies
e.g. Hisense, Huawei, Minmetals, WISCO, XCMG, ZCC Cutting Tools, ZTE
France / 1,000 companies
e.g. Air Liquide, Bonduelle, Decathlon, L‘Oréal, Peugeot, Renault, Saint Gobain, Rigips, Teleperformance, Total
Austria / 800 companies
e.g. Benteler, Hasco Hasenclever, Müllers Mühle, Papstar, Strabag, Voestalpine
Turkey / 750 companies
e.g. ALFA Möbel, Gökbora, Karaca Porzellan, Kässbohrer/Tirsan, Sarar, Tadim, Turbelco
Japan* / 650 companies
e.g. Alps Electric, Asahi Kasei, Canon, Fujifilm, Hitachi, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Toshiba, Toyota
Italy / 570 companies
e.g. Barilla, Diesel, Elettronica, R.D.M. Arnsberg, TX Logistik
Sweden / 330 companies
e.g. Atlas Copco, Ericsson, Ikea, SANDVIK, Securitas
Poland* / 300 companies
e.g. GWI, Hoesch Design/Sanplast Group, FLT-Metall, Tele-Fonika Kable
Denmark/ 250 companies
e.g. Arla Foods, Grundfos, ISS Facility Services, NKT, Only Stores
Russia* / 250 Unternehmen
e.g. HBL Holding, Hotel St. Petersburg, OMK Steel, Omsk Carbon, Sovtransavto
Finland / 130 companies
e.g. Kemira, Metso, Outokumpu Nirosta, Stora Enso Paper, UPM Kymmene/Rhein Papier
Israel / 130 companies
e.g. Albaad Deutschland, BTN Baran Telecom, Calorplast Wärmetechnik, Constab Polyolefin Additives, CoreTigo, Kornit Digital Europe, Optibus, OrCam, Safe Ride
India / 110 companies
e.g. Ashok Leyland, Bharat Forge, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Group, Wipro
Taiwan* / 100 companies
e.g. Aiptek, Asus, Benq Deutschland, Nanya Technology, QCG Computer
Norway / 70 companies
e.g. Hydro Aluminium, Oldo Sports, Statkraft Markets, SuperOffice, Tomra Systems
Korea* / 60 companies
e.g. Bixolon, Clark Europe, CTR, Doosan, EH Med, Hwacheon, Posco, Seegene
* own investigation
Sources: ORBIS Europe business database, August 2021; NRW.Global Business GmbH
