Legal Traditions and Foreign Ownership Modes: Evidence from China

Using census data gathered in 2001, the present paper examines how legal traditions influence foreign investors’ choice of ownership modes in China. The study finds that, first, investors from economies sharing the same legal origin with China tend to select ownership modes with a relatively high level of foreign control. That is, such foreign direct investment (FDI) firms are more likely to be wholly owned enterprises or joint ventures with relatively large foreign shares. Second, similarities in legal enforcement between China and the home economies correlate positively with high foreign control. Third, the effects of legal traditions on ownership modes are relatively weak for new entrants compared to their forerunners, probably owing to the continuous improvement in China's business and law institutions.     

Firm heterogeneity,foreign market entry mode and ownership choice

We study the relationship between firm productivity, foreign market entry mode and affiliate ownership choice using Kolmogorov–Smirnov stochastic dominance tests on Japanese firm-level productivity and horizontal FDI data into 20 OECD countries during the period 1985–2001. We devote particular attention to different types of joint ventures to find that affiliate ownership increases with the parent firm's TFP.     

Determinants of Different Modes of FDI: Firm-Level Evidence from Japanese FDI into the US

There are four major modes through which firms undertake foreign direct investment (FDI) – merger and acquisition (M&A), joint venture (JV), new plant (NP) and others (O). The four modes of FDI are distinct from each other, and each has its own unique advantages and disadvantages. While a large and growing empirical literature examines the determinants of FDI, very few studies examine the determinants of different modes of FDI. The central objective of this paper is to empirically analyze the extent to which the determinants of FDI such as firm size influences the choice of one mode of FDI over another. Our analysis follows a stylized two-stage investment process. First, we look at the probability of whether a Japanese firm is willing to undertake FDI in the US. Second, for firms that are willing to undertake FDI, we analyze which mode of FDI - i.e. M&A, joint venture, new plant or other FDI – they will undertake. The second stage is the innovation of this paper and its contribution to the FDI literature.     

FDI facilitated by agglomeration economies: evidence from manufacturing and services joint ventures in China

The open door policy of China’s economic reform since the 1980s has attracted heavy foreign direct investment (FDI) flows into China and especially to Guangdong (particularly the Pearl River Delta region, PRD) and induced significant economic growth during the past two decades. While there exist various classical theories of FDI in attempting to identify the determinants of FDI inflow and to explain the behavior of FDI flows, limited attention has been given from the perspective of agglomeration effects generated by a core-periphery (CP) relation.This paper intends to study the impacts of agglomerations on FDI inflows in the context of Krugman’s CP relation (1991) by investigating (1) the formation of a CP relation via gravity model analysis; (2) whether different types of industry FDI flows will respond differently in the CP-system, given agglomeration effects; and (3) whether FDI origin and firm scale matter in affecting FDI flows.A database consisting of a population frame of 37,742 firm-level manufacturing and services joint ventures investing in Guangdong in 1998 was used. Empirical results show that the agglomerations of the CP relation have affected FDI flow patterns. While both manufacturing and services FDI and sources of investment responded differently to the impacts, smaller firms were found more responsive to the CP-agglomeration settings regardless of FDI by industry type and by source. The significance and implications of the CP-system to further facilitate FDI in the region are discussed.     

Institutions and FDI location choice: The role of cultural distances

Using an extensive data set on foreign invested enterprises (FIEs) in the Chinese mainland, we compare the sensitivities of the location choice of foreign direct investment (FDI) from six major source countries/areas (Hong Kong, Taiwan, US, EU, Japan and Korea) toward the variation in the strength of economic institutions across China's regions. It is found that FIEs from the source countries/areas that are culturally more remote from China often exhibit a stronger aversion to regions with weaker economic institutions. Moreover, this pattern is often more salient when FDI takes the form of fully-owned enterprises (FOEs) than when it takes the form of joint ventures (JVs).     

Firm-specific advantages,entry modes,and performance of Japanese FDI in Thailand

This study examines how firm-specific advantages and entry mode choice of MNEs determine the performance of their overseas subsidiaries. We propose that the fit between the parent firm’s specific advantages and entry mode has a positive influence on the performance of its directly owned subsidiary. The hypotheses are tested empirically based on a sample of Japanese FDI located in Thailand. The result suggests that the greenfield venture tends to have a higher performance profile than the international joint venture when the Japanese parent firm possesses relatively high firm-specific advantages. Yet it has a poor performance if the Japanese parent firm lacks specific advantages.     

服务业与制造业对华FDI区位选择的差异——基于存量调整模型的实证研究

选取我国省级细分行业面板数据,利用存量调整模型,对服务业与制造业的对华FDI区位选择的差异进行了研究。结果表明:与经济发达国家不同,处于转轨阶段的中国制造业FDI存量调整到均衡水平的速度快于服务业;服务业和制造业跨国公司在中国投资时,服务业FDI看重市场规模和基础设施水平,受集聚因素的影响不显著,制造业则看重市场规模和劳动力成本,倾向于投资到产业集聚度高的地区。此外,由于政府优惠政策多向制造业倾斜,因而地方政府控制力越大越有利于吸引制造业FDI,而不利于吸引服务业FDI。     

人民币汇率变动对中国FDI流入的影响

本文结合人民币汇率与外商直接投资,利用我国1985-2011年省级面板数据,实证分析了人民币汇率变动对中国FDI流入的影响。研究结果表明:1地理位置对我国FDI的流入产生显著的正向效应。沿海省份具有相对的地理位置优势,更容易吸引外商直接投资;2场规模与市场潜力对吸收外商直接投资具有显著的正向促进作用。市场规模和市场潜力越大,FDI流入越多;3劳动力成本与外商直接投资呈显著地负向关系。劳动力成本越低,越能吸引更多的外资直接投资;4实际有效汇率对FDI流入产生显著地正向效应。实际有效汇率升高,本币贬值,更容易吸引外商直接投资。     

Firm Productivity and Mode of Foreign Expansion: Evidence from Taiwanese Manufacturing Firms

This paper builds on the recent literature on firm heterogeneity in international trade and foreign direct investment (FDI), and aims to empirically examine how firm productivity affects a firm’s foreign market entry strategy beyond the simple binary choice between exporting and FDI. Utilizing the panel data of Taiwanese manufacturing firms during 2002–2012, we further classify FDI methods by whole ownership or a joint venture to investigate a firm’s foreign expansion decision. By performing Kolmogorov–Smirnov (KS) tests, we find that if a firm is more productive, it is more likely to choose FDI rather than exporting. However, productivity of firms choosing whole ownership is not so different from choosing a joint venture. Furthermore, a more productive firm is more likely to conduct both whole ownership of the foreign subsidiary and a joint venture formation in the case of FDI.     

FDI and market entry/exit: Evidence from China

This paper considers the impact of FDI and FDI-related spillovers on the entry and exit rates of domestic firms in mainland China's manufacturing sector. Since we suspect that aggregate results obscure differing effects based on the source of the FDI, we disaggregate FDI into that originating from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan (HMT) area and the rest of the world. The empirical analysis, based on 4-digit industry level panel data over the period 2003–2007, reveals that FDI originating from the rest of the world has made a significant contribution to the entry rate of domestic firms in China and the spillover effect arising from backward linkages is also positive and significant. However, FDI originating from HMT area has not encouraged domestic entry, whilst it has contributed to an increase in the exit rate of domestic firms.     

中国FDI空间集聚与趋势面

改革开放以来,我国FDI的空间分布呈现出明显的集聚特征,FDI空间集聚对区域发展差距扩大产生重要影响。究竟空间因素多大程度上能解释FDI的空间分布?本文应用空间计量经济学与趋势面分析相结合方法,以601个县级以上城市人均FDI和空间位置坐标数据研究了FDI的空间集聚与趋势面。研究发现,空间因素对FDI集聚分布的相关性极其显著。从空间因素看,中国人均FDI分布可分成5个集聚区域,北部和西南地区难以吸引FDI入驻。这意味着,更有效地促进FDI北上,尤其是西进应当作为今后较长时期内我国FDI政策的导向。     

跨国并购和有机扩张的学术论争及其引申

中国对外直接投资采用了复杂一体化战略,国际直接投资的传统OLI-IDP框架不完全适用于解释中国在海外寻求知识资源的行为,需要调整和补充。中国政府在企业对外直接投资方面发挥着重要作用。跨国并购和有机扩张是获取海外知识资源的主要方式,学者们基于调查问卷和典型案例分析、大型并购数据库分析和模型构建等方法评估了包括跨国并购在内的各种海外市场进入方式的绩效。对这些问题的研究有助于进一步推动中国知识资源寻求型对外直接投资。     

知识产权保护与南北技术扩散

本文将知识产权保护对跨国公司进入策略的影响纳入南北技术扩散的两阶段博弈模型,分析了南方国家为获得更多技术溢出而进行的知识产权保护的政策选择。认为南方国家最优知识产权保护力度应为刚够吸引FDI的程度,任何加强保护的措施将增加南方国家企业的成本,从而降低南方国家企业的利润,并损害消费者福利。通过进一步分析知识产权保护的影响因素发现,通过关税和知识产权保护制度的组合政策可以吸引FDI进入对南方国家溢出效应较好的产业。     

Does the Confucius Institute Network Impact Cultural Distance? A Panel Data Analysis of Cross‐Border Flows in and out of China

This paper examines the impact of cultural distance in general and the Confucius Institute Network in particular on cross‐border flows of tourists, goods and investment in and out of China. We estimate a panel gravity model of inbound and outbound flows between 2004 and 2012. We find that the presence of Confucius Institute(s) in the source country increases inbound tourism and equity flows and outbound export and FDI flows for China, while other measures of cultural distance have less of an impact.     

技术进步、研发投入与外商直接投资的区位选择

本文从理论和实证分析的角度探讨了技术进步、研发投入和外商直接投资的关系。结果显示,中国各地区技术进步率、相对技术效率水平以及研发投入水平的提高,都有助于吸引更多外商直接投资的进入。新兴的研发和技术因素逐渐取代基础设施、交通运输条件等传统因素,成为外商在华直接投资区位选择的主要决定因素。据此本文认为,对于外资利用不足的中西部地区而言,应通过加大研发投入、培养区域自主创新能力、着力提高本地区的相对技术效率水平、加快推进本地区的技术进步幅度,以提高本地区对外商直接投资的吸引效应。     

中国与印度对外直接投资的比较与启示

近年来,中印两国在吸引外资方面的竞争与潜力已成为国内外研究的焦点之一,相形之下,对两国的对外直接投资却鲜有关注。事实上,中印对外直接投资发展迅猛,且呈现出不同的特点和竞争优势。本文从投资规模、投资主体、投资行业、投资区位和投资绩效方面对中印对外直接投资现状进行比较,然后在分析中印对外直接投资的宏观经济效应差异的基础上,提出了促进中国对外直接投资发展的政策建议。     

RTA对FDI影响的第三国效应——挤出还是溢出

本文利用美国在亚太地区的投资考察了区域贸易协定(RTA)对FDI影响的第三国效应。利用空间面板数据的研究结果发现,美国在亚太地区的FDI具有明显的混合型特征;RTA具有非常显著的投资效应和第三国效应,一国加入RTA提高了本国吸引FDI的能力,却对其他国家的FDI构成了明显的挤出效应;稳健性分析表明,结论对于空间权数和解释变量的选择都是稳健的;根据测算,由于周边自由贸易区的签订,中国被挤出的FDI为17.5%。论文最后对我国的RTA政策提出了相关建议。     

中国引进服务业FDI研究——基于现状与效率的视角

2011年世界投资报告指出,在金融危机时期全球FDI流量减少最多的就是服务业。面对这一现实,各国对服务业FDI的争夺会越来越激烈。目前,我国引进服务业FDI已具备了一定的规模并保持着良好的发展势头,但与发达国家仍有一定的差距,高端服务业和新兴服务业利用FDI的比重还很低,利用服务业FDI的结构还需要继续优化。我国引进服务业FDI效率不高,各省在服务业领域引进FDI的业绩和效率极不平衡,大多数省份未能充分发挥本地区的优势吸引FDI流向服务业,对此本文提出了相应的对策建议。     

Heterogeneous effects of bilateral investment treaties

Bilateral investment treaties (BITs) are an increasingly used policy instrument to encourage FDI inflows, particularly inflows into developing countries. In this paper we estimate a gravity model of FDI flows from a sample of OECD countries to a broader sample of developing economies, examining the impact of BITs on these flows. BITs are signed between highly heterogeneous country-pairs, with important differences found in terms of the institutional and economic distance between BIT signatories. These differences may help explain the mixed results on the effects of BITs on FDI flows in the existing literature, with our exploration of non-linearities in this relationship suggesting that the effects of BITs are increasing in the difference in GDP and GDP per capita between source and host. BITs appear to have no impact upon FDI flows for country-pairs that are too dissimilar in terms of the strength of their political institutions.     

Effects on China and ASEAN of the ASEAN-China FTA: The FDI perspective

The ASEAN-China FTA (ACFTA) is a significant step in regional economic integration for both China and the ASEAN countries. While analysis of the effects of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) most commonly focuses on the trade effects, the closeness of the link between trade and investment implies that the effect of an FTA on foreign direct investment (FDI) is also potentially significant. FTAs may stimulate FDI through the effects of market expansion and vertical fragmentation, while they may also reduce FDI through a plant rationalization effect. The overall effect of an FTA on FDI flows is an empirical question. This paper examines the impact of ACFTA on FDI flows through an econometric model that captures the influence of East Asian production networks on FDI, which we expect to be an important explanatory factor. The model finds that ACFTA has a significant and positive effect on FDI flows. A brief survey of the theoretical literature on the welfare and other related effects of FDI serves to emphasize that the extent to which individual member countries of the ACFTA will benefit from this increase in FDI will depend in important ways on the policies pursued in each country.