The other Southeast Asian countries that are also projected by IHS to be the FDI hot spots in the region, are China, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Malaysia, The Philippines and Thailand.

"Over the next decade, Asia Pacific is forecast to be the fastest growing region of the global economy and the region that offers the biggest potential gains for foreign direct investment," IHS said in a release Thursday.

"The Asia Pacific region will grow at an average annual rate of 4.5 per cent per year, boosted by rapid growth in consumer spending in China, India and Southeast Asia," said IHS Chief Economist Asia Pacific Rajiv Biswas.

"A key source of strength for Asia Pacific is the rapidly growing size of the economic region, which now accounts for around one-third of world GDP, generating strong intra-regional trade and investment flows."

Amongst the South Asian economies, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are expected to show rapid growth over the next decade.

According to the think tank, the new Sri Lankan government has embarked on sweeping economic reforms, with its first budget containing considerable economic liberalization measures.

The Sri Lankan economy is projected to grow at an average annual pace of 5.6 percent per year over 2016-2020 while key growth industries are expected to include logistics, tourism, agricultural products, IT-BPO industries and construction.

(Colombo Page)