India’s outward foreign direct investment (OFDI), or overseas direct investment, declined by 39 per cent to $28.64 billion in the year ended March 2024, amid uncertain global economic conditions.
In the year ended March 2023, outward FDI, which is represented by total financial commitment, stood at $46.96 billion, according to the RBI data. The data released shows overseas direct investment both under the automatic route and the approval route. Of the total overseas direct investment, commitments through the equity route stood at $9.62 billion in fiscal 2024, compared to $19.13 billion in FY2023, the data showed. The equity contributed around 34 per cent of the total financial commitment made in FY2024.
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In FY2024, the loan commitments stood at $5.24 billion as against $7.73 billion made in FY2023. “This (outward FDI) all depends on whether opportunities are available for Indian companies or not. With the global economy being in a state of flux, there would have been fewer such (outward FDI) investments being made,” said Madan Sabnavis, Chief Economist, Bank of Baroda.
Experts said the dip in overseas direct investment last year was because overseas acquisitions by the Indian companies were also not very large.
The overseas guarantees issued by the Indian companies were around $14 billion as against $20.09 billion in FY2023. In FY2024, March witnessed the highest outward FDI to the tune of $3.92 billion, with equity commitments of $2.03 billion, also the highest in the year, as per the RBI’s provisional data. In March, loan commitments were $1.05 billion and the guarantee issued stood at $839.17 million.
The overseas guarantees issued by the Indian companies were around $14 billion as against $20.09 billion in FY2023. 
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