North Texas attracts foreign investors

Zoom in: In its comparison of foreign investments in U.S. cities, FT and Nikkei ranking took into account several metrics like the makeup of the local workforce, openness to foreign workers and safety and affordability.

• Dallas ranks sixth, just below Houston. Plano ranks 13th, just above Austin.

The big picture: The U.S. has long been the No. 1 recipient of foreign investments globally. China almost took that spot at the height of the COVID pandemic in 2020, the FT reports.

• The U.S. is expected to solidify its lead this year — with a record number of planned greenfield foreign direct investment projects over $1 billion.

State of play: Japan remains the biggest foreign investor in the U.S., and Toyota's massive North American headquarters in Plano shows just how far other countries' money can go here.

• The billion-dollar campus opened in 2017 and employs 6,600 people. The Japanese carmaker also has the naming rights to Irving's Toyota Music Factory and Frisco's Toyota Stadium.
• "Every site we pay for, we want to make sure it's successful — and that success starts with its labour force," Tim Ingle, CFO of Toyota North America, told FT.