A record 193 foreign firms established new operations or expanded existing ones in the Netherlands last year, creating over 4,300 jobs, according to new figures from the Netherlands’ Foreign Investment Agency.

This is the highest number recorded in the NFIA’s 30 year existence, the organisation is quoted as saying in the Financieele Dagblad. The previous record -155 – dates from 2010.
Most of the new activities involve sales and marketing (59), headquarters (41) and distribution centres (39), the paper said.
The NFIA said most companies – 65 – set up in the Amsterdam region – a figure which conflicts with city council information. Council executive Carolien Gehrels said in January 118 foreign firms had set up in and around the capital in 2011, creating 1,231 jobs.
Zuid-Holland province attracted 46 new firms, Noord-Brabant 36 and Limburg 15, the FD said.