Foreign investors expended $373.4 billion in 2016 to acquire, establish, or expand U.S. businesses — a 15 percent decrease (approximately $66.2 billion) from $439.6 billion in 2015 — according to an infobrief from the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Of that $373.4 billion, approximately $5.6 billion was deployed to support the creation of new businesses. BEA reports that foreign direct investment (FDI) in newly acquired, established, or expanded foreign-owned businesses was responsible for employing 480,800 individuals. The BEA data also provides information on investments broken out by select industries, state, and type of investment made (e.g., startup capital, expansion capital, or business acquisition).