承接服务业国际转移:中国区位比较优势的实证

服务业离岸外移是当前国际产业转移的重要内容,抓住机遇承接服务业国际转移,提升自身的产业结构对于包括中国在内的发展中国家具有十分重要的战略意义。本文在回顾相关文献研究成果的基础上,利用面板数据模型对对华服务业直接投资的主要区位影响因素进行了实证研究,结果显示人均国内生产总值和人力资本存量是影响中国吸引服务业直接投资的重要区位因素。     

我国服务业外国直接投资的区位因子分析

本文运用多元线性回归计量分析方法,从实证角度对近10年来影响我国服务业外国直接投资的区位因子进行了分析。结果表明,市场开放度、服务业外国直接投资集聚效应对我国服务业外国直接投资影响最大,彼此间存在着显著的线性关系。而影响外国直接投资的传统区位因素,如市场规模、市场增长潜力、劳动力成本等,虽然与服务业外国直接投资也存在着一定的相关关系,但其线性关系并不显著。     

沿海地区临港产业集聚地区差异研究——基于17个港口城市面板数据

文章运用2000—2012年17个港口城市临港产业的面板数据,从空间、产业、时间三个维度,分析了三大经济圈之间及圈内临港产业集聚的动态差异,结果发现:环渤海地区唐山市的钢铁工业集聚明显,纺织服装业、石油化工业、能源产业集聚发展相对稳定;长三角地区各城市纺织服装业、装备制造业集聚度变化差异较大,产业布局处于剧烈的调整阶段,能源产业集聚发展潜力巨大;珠三角地区临港产业集聚程度普遍较高,各城市特色产业明显,广州的食品加工业和能源产业、汕头的木材加工业集聚效应突出。     

The FDI location decision: Distance and the effects of spatial dependence

We investigate how different conceptions of distance impact upon one of the fundamental decisions made by foreign investors, the choice of foreign direct investment (FDI) location within the selected host country. We argue that the attractiveness of host country locations to foreign investors depends not only upon location-specific attributes such as labor costs, but also upon the location's proximity to alternative locations. We provide theoretical rationales for how and why alternative concepts of distance might impact upon firms’ FDI location decisions, and explicitly model different measures of geographic, economic and administrative distance. Empirically we illustrate the use of a number of spatial regression models with a new dataset on FDI in Chinese prefecture-cities, and have shown, in this context, that geographic distance is not the ‘best’ measure of distance to use. We find clear evidence of spatial dependence between the cities based upon economic distance, with weaker evidence related to administrative distance. The distinctive contribution of this paper is to emphasize that city-level policy to attract FDI is more likely to succeed if the prefecture-city is economically (and administratively) close to alternative city locations, while any policy expenditure may fail to attract FDI inflows if the prefecture-city is distant from other city locations.     

Convergence of accounting standards and foreign direct investment

Since the development of the eclectic paradigm by Dunning (1977, 1988, 1993), many studies have investigated different forms of location advantages that attract foreign direct investment (FDI). In this study, we consider accounting standards as a component of the institutional infrastructure of a location and hypothesize that the convergence of domestic and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) promotes FDI as it reduces information processing costs for foreign investors.² We also hypothesize that the effect of reduced information costs is stronger for partner countries whose accounting systems showed greater pre-convergence differences because they magnify the facilitating role of accounting standard convergence for FDI. Using bilateral FDI data from 30 OECD countries between 2000 and 2005, we find evidence generally consistent with these hypotheses.     

江苏省对外直接投资区位选择的影响因素研究

在企业开展对外直接投资(ODI)过程中,合理选择投资区位是关键问题,关系到对外投资活动是否成功。目前基于这方面的研究大多基于国家层面,而本文以江苏为研究对象,通过对江苏ODI区位选择的现状进行分析,发现江苏ODI区位选择存在的问题,运用实证分析的方法研究各因素对江苏ODI区位选择的影响,并提出优化江苏ODI区位选择的对策,为江苏省ODI的发展提供理论借鉴。     

Social exclusion, location and transport disadvantage amongst non-driving seniors in a Melbourne municipality, Australia

Over the past decade, researchers have refocused their attention upon the interconnection between locationally disadvantaged communities and poor transport services in order to better understand social exclusion. Limited access to private and public transport has often been identified as a major contributing factor to social isolation and economic poverty that certain groups in the community experience. To date, an insufficient amount of research attention has focused on the elderly or seniors, who are often identified as being subject to social exclusion because of difficulties associated with travelling outside their homes to access services and facilities especially for non-car drivers. Moreover, a disproportionate amount of research undertaken on transport related forms of social exclusion in Australia has understandably looked towards the outskirts of its major urban centres, where services and facilities are sparsely located and generally only accessible by car. This paper provides a different insight by analysing a middle distant municipality where large spatial concentrations of seniors are to be found, some of whom do not have ready access to a car or have difficulty accessing the public bus service. Using a variety of data sources for a municipality in Melbourne, this case study reveals that social exclusion of non-car driving seniors is reinforced by a regional public transport system that cannot adequately service the entire municipality. For now, the incidence of locational and transport related disadvantage is restricted to small pockets of the municipality, but as seniors age and surrender their car driving licences this problem could become more serious. The study concludes by calling for more analyses to be undertaken into transport engendered social exclusion if this problem is to be contained as the post-war baby-boomers generation ages across most of the middle suburbs of Australian cities.     

Some Reflections on the Spatial Dimensions of Occupational Segregation

This paper considers the role that urban spatial structure may play in the process of occupational segregation, and argues that neoclassical economic models of urban employment and residential location decisions have not considered the relationship between gender-based labor market status and space. The paper provides a critical feminist perspective on how conventional urban models have been used to explain patterns of segregation, and suggests reasons for limitations in existing theoretical and empirical analysis. It also explores ways in which economists can draw on work in other disciplines to develop fuller and more useful models of the relationship between urban spatial structure and occupational segregation.     

High-speed rail and office location choices. A stated choice experiment for the Netherlands

High-speed rail is seen as a factor contributing to the attractiveness of a location for economic activities. This paper focuses on how the level-of-service characteristics of railway stations, and in particular the presence of high-speed train services, influence the attractiveness of locations for specific types of offices. The results are presented for a stated choice experiment for location choices of offices in the Netherlands. It is concluded that the availability of high-speed train services contributes to the attractiveness of a location for offices. For internationally-oriented offices the areas around stations with international high-speed train services are attractive because of their good international accessibility. We also found an indication that high-speed train services can raise the status of an office site. In the Netherlands, the domestic high-speed train services are less relevant for location choices, because of the small domestic distances. Besides high-speed train services, other location characteristics that determine how well a site is connected to the railway network are also found to be important for location choices. Thereby differences between offices occur, which can partly be explained by the number of trips to/from an office.     

Strategic Location Behaviour: The Case of Japanese Investments in Europe

SUMMARY

We address the question of competition within the location choices of firms. In a framework of agglomeration effects, both spatial and temporal dimensions of the firms' decisions are studied. We show that the competition consequences of preemptive move and optimal time of entry can interfere with the geographical decisions. Our results contrast with those of agglomeration economics models which generally provide extreme results of mono-location. The equilibria described here tend to demonstrate that the relation between competition strength and spatial differentiation remains pertinent in a context of agglomeration economies. A conditional logit empirical study analyses the geographical choice of Japanese firms in Europe. Agglomeration variables, public policies and labour market determinants are tested, highlighting the existence of temporal and spatial proximity in the behaviour of firms. The competition conditions experienced by firms of each specific sector also appear to be important in the location decision of Japanese investors.