Romania climbs to the top of investment destinations in Europe: Who is paying close attention to our country and how important the geographical region has become
Romania has climbed to the top of investment destinations in Europe, being, along with Poland, one of the most attractive markets in the region for international investors, according to PwC Global CEO Survey 2026 data.
Compared to the previous edition, Romania went from 13th to 9th place on the continent and from 33rd to 28th globally, given that 51% of company leaders around the world say they are planning international expansion this year.
More significant is the fact that Romania surpassed in this ranking countries such as Portugal, Switzerland, Belgium and Greece, with a tradition of attracting international capital.
These data confirm a trend that we also observe from direct interactions with investors: Romania is no longer an exotic option, but a strategic one.
Between 2014 and 2024, the cumulative balance of foreign direct investment in Romania doubled from 62 billion euros to 125 billion euros. Moreover, after a contraction in FDI flows in 2023, 2024 and the first part of 2025, the second part of last year saw a strong return of capital inflows, which closed the year at more than €8 billion.
Where is the interest coming from and how are regional flows changing?
The profile of investors who choose Romania is predominantly European: Poland, Turkey, Germany, Greece, Austria, Italy and Ukraine.
The paradigm shift in the behavior of Central European investors is especially interesting. For example, if five years ago Polish companies focused mainly on Germany, Great Britain or the Netherlands, now they prefer investments in Central Europe, and Romania is one of the top destinations. Companies such as Zabka, Maspex, Polenergia or Elemental Holdings have already found a place in the Romanian market.
At the same time, only 10% of the company leaders who mentioned Romania are from outside Europe, which shows that geographical proximity and European integration matter enormously, but also that Romania still has a long way to go to become visible to investors from Asia, the Middle East or America.
Which sectors are fueling growth?
The sectoral distribution of planned investments in Romania reveals a solid industrial profile. The areas targeted by investors are manufacturing, engineering and construction, retail, business services, banking and capital markets, transport and logistics. These sectors are not in the top by chance, but reflect exactly the dynamics we observe in the market.
On the other hand, the technology sector is not a priority for investors looking at Romania and it should make us think. Romania has the necessary IT talent and ecosystem, but it still fails to convert this advantage into significant investments.
An economy that also looks outside
Equally important is the other side of the coin that the CEO Survey data shows: Romanian companies are also becoming more active in investing outside the country. Half of the CEO Survey respondents in Romania plan international investments in the next 12 months. Their favorite destinations are Germany, Poland, USA, France, Czech Republic and Moldova.
Romanian investments abroad are still very low, even compared to other countries in the region, such as the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary, and this is holding back the growth potential of the local economy. Expanding the presence of Romanian companies across borders could bring multiple benefits, such as reducing the current account deficit, improving the balance of payments and increasing the resilience of the local economy to external shocks.
Perception matters: What investors are telling us about the business climate
The signals from the CEO Survey are encouraging, but perception is crucial in the decision to invest, and here the picture is more nuanced. Romania is perceived as uncompetitive for several reasons: bureaucracy, regulatory burden, lack of transparency and consistency in policy application, fiscal burden and infrastructure. The only area considered competitive is the availability of suitable manpower. Fiscal packages passed last year increased operating costs, reduced profitability and demand, forcing companies to prioritize liquidity and postpone long-term growth projects.
Potentially significant, subject to reforms
However, there is a lot of potential for growth. Investments are absolutely necessary for economic growth, both because of the capital and the technologies and knowledge they bring.
What is needed to restore trust? Predictability, transparency and an open dialogue with the business environment are mandatory requirements for a friendly investment environment. The repositioning of global businesses is carried out on geostrategic coordinates, and Romania is advantageously positioned to benefit from these trends. Fiscal and administrative reforms must be carried out to modernize the economy and free up new resources for growth. Romania still has many chapters where it has to recover compared to other European states.
Several medium-term objectives will help to strengthen the status of an attractive economy: the accession to the OECD, which could happen this year, and the completion of the PNRR implementation. Sectors such as energy, infrastructure, retail and financial services continue to be interesting for investors. Also, new opportunities such as Neptun Deep, the SAFE program and defense investments, the absorption of EU funds can generate a new wave of investment interest.
Moreover, it is important that our country continues to diversify its economy by positioning itself in sectors of the future, such as technology and AI, green energy and digital services, where there are still underutilized skills.
The data from the PwC Global CEO Survey show that the world is looking at Romania. It is up to business and government not to squander this attention and to turn the potential into sustainable performance.
The tension between the country's investment potential and structural vulnerabilities is also reflected by S&P's recent confirmation of Romania's investment grade sovereign rating (“BBB-“), which recognizes progress in fiscal consolidation from the first quarter of 2026, but also warns of political risks.
Thus, the perspective of the Romanian economy remains fragile, but conditionally optimistic: after stagnation in 2026, S&P anticipates a return with an increase of 2.5% in 2027. This scenario decisively depends on the continuation of budgetary discipline, the maintenance of political consensus on structural reforms and the absorption of European funds, conditions that the current governmental instability risks delaying precisely at the moment when Romania most needs coherence and predictability.
Article signed by Daniel Anghel, Country Managing Partner PwC Romania
Article supported by PwC Romania
