世界无形投资亮点

business uncertainty. Stylized trend 1: Intangible investment grew well over three timesfaster than tangible investment between 2008–2024Among the 27 economies covered by this report, intangible investment has been consistentlyoutpacing tangible investment over time (figure 1).1Since 1995 – the earliest year for whichdata are available – intangible investment has more than doubled in real terms, growing by 143percent, whereas tangible investment has grown by just 32 percent.A significant turning point came around 2008, when intangible investment began to accelerate,ultimately achieving a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 4.1 percent between2008–2024. This growth rate has far surpassed that of tangible investment, which expandedby only about 1.1 percent over the same period. This has meant that intangible investment hasgrown well over three times — 3.7 times to be precise — as fast as tangible investment between2008-2024. In the last year alone, intangible investment grew by nearly 3 percent between2023–2024, compared to a tangible investment growth of 1 percent.Total intangible and tangible investment, 1995–2024, indexed (1995=100)Figure 1 Gap widening between intangible and tangible investment19961998200020022004200620082010201220142016201820202022202480100120140160180200220240260TangibleinvestmentIntangibleinvestmentNotes: Investment figures are expressed in PPP-adjusted constant 2020 prices and aggregated across the followingeconomies: Brazil, EU-22, India, the UK and the US. Throughout this report, estimates in “constant 2020 prices” refer toestimates in terms of volume, computed as chain-linked series. Data coverage varies by country: Brazil (2010–2021) andIndia (2011–2022). Japan is excluded from this chart due to the unavailability of estimates in PPP-adjusted constant 2020prices. The EU-22 economies are Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece,Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia,Slovenia, Spain and Sweden.Source: WIPO–LBS Global INTAN-Invest Database, July 2025.Box 1 Investment in intangible assets – an explanationWhat are intangible assets? Today's most valuable companies derive their competitiveadvantage not from physical capital, but from intangible assets – such as R&D, software,data, design, branding, organizational know-how and skilled talent, all creating substantialeconomic value.Why do they matter?Intangible assets drive competitive advantage, innovation and customerloyalty in a knowledge economy. Though invisible, they fuel economic growth, create high-paying jobs and improve living standards.Why measure them accurately?Despite their critical importance, intangible assets remain poorlyunderstood and under-measured. Precise measurement is essential for identifying growthdrivers and designing effective policies. Poor measurement leads to undervaluation, capitalmisallocation, underinvestment and, ultimately, misguided policymaking.1For the purpose of this report, tangible investment refers to investment in physical assets such as machinery,equipment and buildings (excluding residential buildings). The divergence in growth between tangible and intangible investment has widened in recentyears. Tangible investment has remained almost flat since 2020 amid tightening monetarypolicies and global economic uncertainty, whereas intangible investment, across the economiescovered in this report, has continued to climb, reaching USD 7.6 trillion (in current prices) in2024, up from USD 7.4 trillion in 2023.2This same stark divergence in investment growth rates is evident across major advancedeconomies, as well as in Brazil and India. Across these countries, intangible investment hasconsistently outpaced tangible investment, a trend that has persisted even amid periods ofslowing economic growth and low business confidence (figures 2, 3 and 4).In the US, intangible investment grew more than five times faster than tangible investmentbetween 2020–2024 (figure 2). France followed a similar pattern, with intangible investmentincreasing at a rate three times faster than tangible investment. This divergence is even morepronounced in Germany, where intangible investment increased by over 3 percent annuallyduring the period, while tangible investment declined by about 1 percent. In the UK, on thecontrary, tangible investment (growing at 4.8 percent) slightly surpassed intangible investment(which grew at 4.3 percent) during this period.Based on the most recent data from 2024, among those economies with leading levels ofintangible investment, France recorded the fastest growth in intangible investment in realterms (over 5 percent from 2023 to 2024), followed by the UK (over 4 percent), Spain andDenmark (both close to 4 percent) and the US (3.5 percent). Among economies with relativelylower levels of intangible investment, Lithuania stood out with a remarkable growth rate ofnearly 17 perc