Portfolio investment

A minority investment in a company's stocks and bonds.

"In contrast to FDI, foreign portfolio investors have no controlling interest in the investment, which is typically a short-term one. The relative ease with which portfolio investment can enter and exit countries has been a major contributing factor to the increasing volatility and instability of the global financial system."
(Programme for Workers' Activities (ACTRAV), Portfolio investment, Glossary, visited 2010-08-03)