July 23 (SeeNews) - Slovenia is an attractive location for foreign direct investment (FDI) due to its modern infrastructure with access to important EU transport corridors and a highly educated and professional workforce, the U.S. Department of State said.
Other factors like a major port on the Adriatic Sea with access to the Mediterranean, proximity to Central European and Balkan markets, and membership in the Schengen Area, EU, and Eurozone also play in favour of Slovenia as an attractive destination for FDI, the State Department said in its "2021 Investment Climate Statements" report published on its website.
However, Slovenia’s economy is heavily dependent on foreign trade and susceptible to international price and currency fluctuations as well as economic conditions among its major trading partners, due to its small domestic market of just over two million people, the US Department of State said.
"Although the government privatised the country’s first and third largest state-owned banks in 2019 and the fourth one in 2020, roughly 35% of Slovenia's economy remains state-owned or state-controlled, and there is widespread skepticism in some quarters toward privatisation and foreign direct investment, despite general awareness of FDI's importance to economic growth, job creation, and developing new technologies," the US Department of State noted.
Potential investors in Slovenia may face significant challenges, including a lack of transparency in economic and commercial decision-making, time-consuming bureaucratic procedures, opaque public tender processes, regulatory red tape, and a heavy tax burden for high earners, it added.
The State Departments's Investment Climate Statements provide country-specific information on the business climates of more than 170 countries and economies. They are prepared by economic officers stationed in embassies and posts around the world and analyse a variety of economies that are or could be markets for U.S. businesses of all sizes.