Export spillover from foreign direct investment in China during pre- and post-WTO accession

This study investigates the effects of export spillover from foreign direct investment (FDI) before and after China’s World Trade Organization (WTO) accession, with particular consideration of the FDI source country and firm ownership structure. It uses a Chinese manufacturing firm-level panel dataset, for the period 1998–2007. In general, there are no spillover effects among state-owned enterprises (SOEs). This study finds negative horizontal and positive vertical spillovers associated with FDI from Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan (HMT) among non-SOEs. Furthermore, non-HMT FDI, which is predominantly from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, have statistically significant positive horizontal and vertical spillover effects on the export performance of private Chinese firms. Positive forward spillovers occurred only after China joined the WTO, while positive backward spillovers existed during both the pre- and post-WTO periods. China’s entry into the WTO intensified the forward linkage of production, implying that greater availability of high-quality inputs produced by non-HMT foreign multinationals benefited the export performance of private domestic firms.     

Spatial Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investment: Evidence from the Yangtze River Delta in China

This paper examines the spatial externality from foreign direct investment on domestic firms. Using Chinese firm‐level data for 2004, and after accounting for an endogeneity problem, we find that foreign firms generate a significantly positive spillover effect on the regional productivity of domestic firms in similar counties and industries. Estimating a spatial‐autoregressive model, we further show that such local spillovers could transmit to domestic firms in other counties and industries through interactions among domestic firms. However, these spatial multiplier effects decline with distance, thereby reducing the foreign direct investment spillover effects for domestic firms in distant locations.     

Technology spillovers from Chinese outward direct investment: The case of Ethiopia

The present study uses firm survey data of 1033 manufacturing firms operating in Ethiopia in 2011 to examine the impact of Chinese outbound direct investment on the productivity of domestic firms. Particularly, we attempt to answer two questions. Firstly, are Chinese-owned (henceforth foreign) firms more productive than local ones? Secondly, does the presence of foreign firms generate technology spillovers on domestic firms operating in the same industry? Our empirical results show that foreign firms are more productive and that their presence has different spillover effects on the productivity of domestic firms. In particular, we find that domestic firms with higher absorptive capacity experience positive spillovers, while those with low absorptive capacity witness negative spillover. We also find that small firms and non-exporting firms benefit more from spillovers than do other types of domestic firms. In this study, instrumental variables are used to address the potential endogeneity between foreign firm presence and domestic firm productivity.     

Do Non‐exporting Plants Benefit from Exporting Peer Plants?*

This study examines indirect spillover effects at plant level within firms by analyzing the performance of non‐exporting plants with exporting peer plants by using Korean plant–firm matched data from 2007 to 2013. Our results show that there are no significant differences in growth between non‐exporting plants and their exporting peer plants in the same firms, whereas significant differences exist among non‐exporting plants depending on whether their peers export. This implies that exporting peer plants are important channels through which non‐exporting plants benefit within a firm.     

The role of foreign direct investment in the host-country firm selection process: firm-level evidence from Slovenian manufacturing

This paper examines the role of inward foreign direct investment (FDI) in firm selection processes in the Slovenian manufacturing sector in the 1994–2003 period. It adopts the firm dynamics framework that allows testing of selection effects directly by assessing the impact of foreign firms’ activity on the probability of exiting of local firms (crowding out). The results show that intra-industry productivity spillover effects offset only a minor part of the competition pressure which results from foreign firm entry, hence incumbent firms experience a drop in their survival probability upon a foreign firm’s entry within a particular industry. This result is driven by foreign firm entry of the greenfield type, as entry through the acquisition of existing firms has no significant effect. The strength of the crowding-out effect decreases with the incumbent firm’s export propensity. There is no significant evidence that inward FDI would stimulate the selection process through backward linkages in the upstream supplying industries, whereas foreign firms’ activity reduces the exit probability of downstream local customers (through forward linkages).     

外资所有权与工资升水——来自中国制造业的证据

很多研究发现外商投资企业比内资企业对同等情况下的工人所付工资要高,本文利用中国省际制造业分大类数据对此进行了实证研究,研究的结果表明,在控制了各种对工资影响因素(产业、地区、企业、工人素质)后,外资所有权工资升水显著存在,大约为10%。同时还对平均薪酬进行了研究,外资所有权薪酬升水大约为7%。此外,本文还得出了其他一些有意义的结论。     

Foreign Investment and Technological Spillovers in Kenya: Extent and Mode of Occurrence

This paper uses a uniquely designed analytical framework based on technological learning and capability development to examine the extent of multinational company spillover occurrence in the Kenyan manufacturing industry. Using a firm‐level survey data, we examined the kind of spillovers occurring, extent of occurrence as well as the channels through which such spillovers occurred. The results obtained showed that the main kinds of spillovers occurring were product and process spillovers followed by marketing, management and organisation. Results of t‐tests analysis showed significant differences between competition and demonstration, and linkage and labour mobility implying that the first two mechanisms were extremely important in spillover occurrence compared with the latter two in the Kenyan context. These have implications that linkage and labour mobility have weaker learning effects, hence weak in stimulating capability building. T‐test analysis showed that more spillovers occurred from foreign firms than from locally owned firms. The results also showed that spillovers were likely to occur due to foreign presence, firm and machine age, skill level, research and development, training and participation in imports. Based on the results generated, the paper portends that foreign direct investment can play an important role in the country's manufacturing industry by stimulating learning and capability development via spillover occurrence.     

Firm Efficiency in Cambodia's Garment Industry on the Eve of the Multi‐Fiber Arrangement Termination

Applying a frontier analysis to 2004 firm‐level data, the present paper investigates firm efficiency and its determinants for Cambodia's garment industry. The study finds that firm experience and remuneration are crucial for improving scale efficiency and overall technical efficiency, while effective use of capital and adequate labor‐skill development are important for enhancing a firm's technical capabilities. Foreign‐owned enterprises with a relatively larger share of foreign labor outperform local firms. However, the present study does not reveal evidence of any advantages of a cluster‐type concentration in Phnom Penh and export markets, nor of any positive impacts of product specialization. The findings imply a need to support skill development for workers and local managers at the middle management level, and to streamline foreign direct investment measures to attract greater numbers of efficient foreign enterprises, so as to promote the development of the garment industry as a whole.     

Labor Quality and Inward FDI： A Firm-level Empirical Study in China

This paper investigates the relationship between labor quality and inward foreign direct investment (FDI) distribution in China using a large sample of Chinese cross‐sectional, firm‐level data, with comprehensive information about labor quality. The paper finds that labor quality measured by education level plays an important role in deciding the distribution of inward FDI, but labor quality measured by working certificates loses its significance using non‐parametric matching techniques and the instrumental variables and generalized method of moments technique. The author also finds that labor quality has a more significant impact on other foreign investments than Hong Kong‐invested, Macau‐invested and Taiwan‐invested firms. The impacts of labor quality on inward FDI are found to be strongly uneven across industries and provinces. Therefore, China should pay more attention to the education of employees in all foreign‐invested firms, and invest more in education to improve labor quality, which will help China to attract more FDI, especially technology‐intensive FDI.     

Does immigrant employment matter for export sales? Evidence from Denmark

Immigration impacts on the economy in ample ways: it affects growth, wages and total factor productivity. This study deals with the effects of immigration on firm exports. Can firms benefit from hiring immigrants to expand their export sales? Or do immigrants who live in the firm’s region affect trade? In contrast to the existing literature, we are able to distinguish these two distinct channels. Using matched employer-employee data from Denmark for the years 1995–2005, we provide novel insights in the nexus between exports and immigration. We further contribute to the literature by providing first evidence on the adjustment of firms’ product portfolio in response to immigration. Our empirical results are consistent with the claim that immigration lowers barriers to trade. Both, regional immigration and foreign employment matter for the composition of firm-level exports. As a novel insight, our findings suggest that firms benefit from immigration in terms of expanded export sales, when they hire foreign employees. We only find weak evidence for the local presence of foreigners to increase export sales, which we ascribe to the conjecture that at least some trade-cost reducing forces of immigration like for example intercultural knowledge or personal and business networks abroad, can only be accessed or exploited via foreign employment.     

Exports versus FDI: An Empirical Test

In a recent paper Helpman, Melitz and Yeaple argue firm heterogeneity leads to self-selection in the structure of international commerce. Only the most productive firms find it profitable to meet the higher costs associated with FDI; the next set of firms finds it profitable to serve foreign markets through exporting; while the least productive firms serve only the domestic market. The paper tests this assumption using the concept of stochastic dominance. Robust support is found for the model, the productivity distribution of multinational firms is found to dominate that of export firms, which in turn dominates that of non-exporters. JEL no. D24, F14, F23     

外商直接投资对中国企业创新的外溢效应研究：基于垂直联系的视角

利用世界银行对中国的企业调研数据,本文从垂直联系视角考察了FDI对中国企业创新的外溢效应。分析的结果表明,垂直联系有利于企业创新与技术溢出。并且,与水平溢出相比,垂直联系渠道发生的溢出更为显著。对垂直联系影响因素的分析表明,拥有外方合作伙伴、位于工业园或出口加工区、加入商业协会、企业拥有较高的国内市场份额、国内市场进口产品份额较高、受国外教育经理的人数比例越高,这些因素均有利于企业垂直联系的建立。然而,企业的出口倾向对前后向联系的作用相反。     

行业关联、外资进入与出口质量——来自中国企业的微观证据

外资合理利用对实现我国本土企业技术进步和转型升级具有重要意义,文章聚焦外资的行业关联从出口升级的视角再次探讨这一问题。文章运用中国工业企业数据库、海关统计数据库和投入产出表的匹配数据,从行业内水平溢出、产业间垂直关联等多个维度系统研究了外资进入对我国企业出口产品质量的影响。文章发现:(1)外资进入显著促进企业出口产品质量升级,外资水平溢出、前向关联和后向关联的质量提升效应均显著,其中后向关联效应最大。(2)外资水平溢出、前向关联和后向关联对企业出口产品质量提升的影响渠道分别通过研发效应、中间品投入效应和市场规模效应得以实现。(3)异质性结果表明,外资进入对非国有企业、一般贸易企业、东部地区企业以及与外资技术差距较小企业的出口质量提升作用更为突出。文章为外资利用与企业出口质量关系提供了更为丰富的微观证据和理论依据,能够为当前中国新一轮高水平对外开放下引资政策调整和优化提供一定的政策启示。     

出口固定成本、融资约束与中国企业出口参与

本文基于新新贸易理论和中国企业面临融资约束的现实,建立离散动态出口模型,发现克服出口固定成本和缓解融资约束可以促进企业出口参与。进而运用2004～2008年中国七十余万家制造业企业数据,从内源融资、银行信贷和商业信贷3个维度衡量融资约束,实证检验理论分析。结果发现,克服出口固定成本是企业参与出口的关键,商业信贷对企业出口参与贡献最大,银行信贷次之,内源融资贡献最小。细化样本后发现,克服出口固定成本仍然是出口的关键,但是,无内源融资企业较之有内源融资企业,内资企业较之外资企业,出口融资都更多依赖商业信贷和银行信贷;国有企业出口融资更多依赖银行信贷,而民营企业更多依赖商业信贷。变化融资约束衡量方法后,结果依然稳健。     

Exports, FDI, and Productivity: Dynamic Evidence from Japanese Firms

This paper examines the relationship between exports, foreign direct investment, and firm productivity. Using longitudinal panel data on Japanese firms, it is found that the most productive firms engage in exports and foreign direct investment, medium productive firms engage in either exports or foreign direct investment, and the least productive firms focus only on the domestic market. Moreover, exports and foreign direct investment appear to improve firm productivity once the productivity convergence effect is controlled for. Firms that retain a presence in foreign markets, either by exports or foreign direct investment, show the highest productivity growth, which contributes to improvements in national productivity. JEL no. F10, F20, D21     

Export spillovers and export performance in China

This paper examines the local export spillover effect on the individual decisions to start exporting (the extensive margin) and export volume (the intensive margin), using a unique dataset of Chinese export firms, at the product-level and by destination country. Based on a gravity-type equation estimated at firm-level, we find that export spillovers positively influence not only the decision of a nearby firm to start exporting, but also the volume of the exporting. Several methods are used to verify the robustness of these results. In addition, we find that the effect of export spillovers is stronger when it is product-destination-specific than that when it is either product or destination-specific alone, and also stronger than that is in general. Geographically, local export spillovers exhibit spatial decay in China: the effect is stronger for firms located in the same city than it is for firms outside the city. Small and multi-product firms are more likely to be influenced by the local export spillovers, and their impact is stronger for firms exporting complex goods and exporting to easy-entry countries. Moreover, the export spillovers from private firms are the strongest, followed by foreign-invested firms with the effect generated by state-owned firms ranking last.     

制造业投入服务化对企业价格加成率的影响:基于全球价值链视角

利用中国工业企业数据库与WIOD数据库,测算中国制造业出口内涵的服务投入增值率与企业价格加成率,实证检验全球价值链视角下的制造业投入服务化对企业价格加成率的影响。研究发现:从整体来看,全球价值链视角下的制造业投入服务化促进了企业价格加成率的提升。异质性检验表明,国内服务投入、运输、信息和通信,以及专业科学技术服务投入的增强有助于企业价格加成率的提升,制造业投入服务化对东部和中部地区、出口企业、民营和外资企业价格加成率的促进作用更强。进一步研究发现,成本降低和技术创新是制造业投入服务化提高企业价格加成率的可能渠道。     

Vertical Spillover Effects of Multinationals on Chinese Domestic Firms via Supplier-Customer Relationships

Foreign direct investment （FDI） can benefit domestic firms in the host country. Using firm- level data for China, we find statistically positive vertical spillover effects of multinational enterprises on the performance of domestic firms through backward and forward supplier- customer relationships. The spillover effects are mainly from large multinational enterprises and are greater for state-owned firms and in poor regions. Our results are robust for both parametric regression and nonparametric matching techniques. Our findings have strong policy implications： while regulations relating to building business relationships with domestic firms when seeking foreign direct investment should be established, such policies should be aimed at private firms, big multinationals and less developed regions.     

中央环保督察和企业进入:来自企业注册数据的证据

本文利用2013-2018年中国所有新建企业的注册信息,构建中国所有城市月度分行业的企业进入数据,并利用双重差分模型识别第一轮中央环保督察如何通过影响新企业进入进而影响中国的产业结构调整。结果表明,环保督察显著减少了民营、高污染行业的企业进入数量。此外,部分生产性服务业企业进入数量也受到环保督察的冲击。在督察组退出督察省份之后,其影响有随时间增强的趋势。环保督察促进了新建企业平均投资规模的增长,在一定程度上提高了行业集中度。考虑到环保督察政策常态化,本文有利于理解中央环保督察政策对产业的影响,并为环保督察政策的制度化和进一步完善提供依据。     

Pricing to market, firm heterogeneity and the role of quality

We build a pricing-to-market (PTM) model with firm heterogeneity, which allows for imperfect competition and market segmentation in the presence of flexible exchange rates, horizontal and vertical differentiation and different tastes of consumers in destination markets. We derive firm’s pricing behaviour in response to price and quality competition shocks. We show that there is PTM heterogeneity across firms if quality has a role. We empirically assess the main predictions of our theoretical framework on Italian firm-level data. We document that export-domestic price margins are significantly affected by price and quality competitiveness factors even controlling for foreign demand conditions, size, export intensity, destination markets and unobservables. Finally, we provide evidence of strong heterogeneity across firms in their reaction to price and quality competitiveness.