- United Kingdom: According to a study by ERNST & YOUNG, Great Britain is the most attractive country in Europe for foreign investors, this country having in fact drained a quarter of the investments in 1999. Following, in order, France, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Belgium, Hungary and the Netherlands. The relatively distant position of this last country is explained, according to this consultants office, by several negative points such as accessibility, a tight labour market and high competition with its neighbours with regard to taxation. The United Kingdom's leading position is, according to different measurements, just as delicate, Far East, Europe and United States investments were looking for locations where transaction costs are low. The fact that British are not part of the Euro area now raises risks linked to exchange rates for companies who settle there. INVEST UK, the agency for the development of foreign investments, welcomed the results by publishing the official figures recorded by the country. Thus, the volume of foreign investments recorded an increase of 16% in 1999, with a total of GBP 252.4 billion of direct investment, or the greatest increase since 1994. In total, 757 new projects have been recorded in 1999 (against 652 one year earlier), most in services (38% of the totals projects) and the manufacturing industry (40%). The United States remains the main source of investment with 48% of the total, ahead of Japan (7.7%), Germany (7%) and Canada and France (6% each).