An exploratory examination of the social capital and FDI linkage and the moderating role of regulatory quality: A cross‐country study

Despite the urge for broader macro‐level examinations of the distinct social constructions within which economic activities take place, numerous national‐level studies of the determinants of foreign‐invested firms have paid little attention to the roles played by social capital and its contingent value in affecting foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows. Drawing on the logic of social capital and institutional theory, this article seeks to offer a complementary, rather than a substitutional, explanation of FDI by examining empirically the national‐level impacts of social capital (trust and associative activity) on FDI and the moderating role of regulatory quality in this relationship. Based on the data of 165 country series from the World Value Survey and the World Bank, our analytical results supported the hypotheses that the rich endowments of social capital positively contributed to the attraction of FDI and such effects are also contingent on the regulatory quality that further strengthened such relationships. These findings also suggest strong implications for managers implementing an FDI and market entry strategy. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Causes of Financial FDI Inflows into Sub‐Saharan Africa (SSA): Evidence from Ghana

The main aim of this article is to examine the factors that influence the inflow of financial foreign direct investment (FDI) into SSA and to understand foreign investors’ perceptions of the role of institutional factors in facilitating financial FDI inflows and the extent to which the postreform business environment has been successful in attracting financial FDI inflows into SSA. An in‐depth qualitative study was adopted for the research. Using two financial multinational corporations as case studies, the environmental factors that influenced their decision to choose Ghana as an investment destination are examined, as well as the institutional and regulatory factors that affect their current operations and future investment decisions. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Foreign Direct Investment in Africa: The Role of Natural Resources,Market Size,Government Policy,Institutions and Political Instability

Data from several investor surveys suggest that macroeconomic instability, investment restrictions, corruption and political instability have a negative impact on foreign direct investment (FDI) to Africa. However, the relationship between FDI and these country characteristics has not been studied. This paper uses panel data for 22 countries over the period 1984–2000 to examine the impact of natural resources, market size, government policies, political instability and the quality of the host country's institutions on FDI. It also analyses the importance of natural resources and market size vis‐à‐vis government policy and the host country's institutions in directing FDI flows. The main result is that natural resources and large markets promote FDI. However, lower inflation, good infrastructure, an educated population, openness to FDI, less corruption, political stability and a reliable legal system have a similar effect. A benchmark specification shows that a decline in the corruption from the level of Nigeria to that of South Africa has the same positive effect on FDI as increasing the share of fuels and minerals in total exports by about 35 per cent. These results suggest that countries that are small or lack natural resources can attract FDI by improving their institutions and policy environment.     

Some Bad News Is Good News for Foreign Investors: The Case of Intellectual Property Rights Infringement in China

Despite China's attractiveness to foreign investors, intellectual property rights (IPR) protection in China has not caught up with international standards. This research aims to quantify the relationships between IPR violations, government effectiveness, and foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in the context of China. Our econometric modeling and estimation based on provincial level data over 2002‐2012 show that in an early development stage of law and regulatory enforcement, the bad news of a rising number of IPR dispute cases signals the good news of an improvement in law and regulatory enforcement, which encourages IPR owners to raise legal cases. By contrast, in the later development stage, when law and regulatory enforcement has become much more effective, the bad news of a rising number of IPR disputes manifests itself as very bad news. Furthermore, this study confirms that FDI inflows enhance IPR protection through improving government effectiveness, and government effectiveness is one of the key factors promoting FDIs. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Intermediary Products: FDI Strategies,Imports, Exports,and Trade Balances in Developed Economies

Has the relationship between the dominant investment motives of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and national trade balances, imports, and exports changed over time? A 1996 study hypothesized and found that the MNE market versus resource seeking investment motives in developed countries (DCs) resulted in different aggregate impacts on national trade balances, imports, and exports. In this study, we ask whether the increased use of intermediary products, a major change in the way MNEs conduct business, affect the previously found patterns. Because firm‐level data on intermediary products is not widely available across countries, we indirectly test their impact, hypothesizing that the rise in use of intermediary products has changed MNE investment motives in DCs, resulting in stronger relationships between foreign direct investment (FDI) and imports/exports in high‐FDI DCs but weaker links between FDI and national trade balances. Implications and future research directions are discussed. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

To What Extent Can Foreign Direct Investment Help Achieve International Development Goals?

For FDI to help alleviate absolute poverty and stimulate economic growth in developing countries, two conditions have to be met. First, developing countries need to be attractive to foreign investors. Second, the host‐country environment in which foreign investors operate must be conducive to favourable FDI effects with regard to overall investment, economic spillovers and income growth. This paper argues that it is more difficult to benefit from FDI than to attract FDI. The widely perceived concentration of FDI in few developing countries tends to obscure that, in relative terms, various small and poor countries are fairly attractive to FDI. Yet, the mobilisation of domestic resources remains by far, more important than attracting FDI for financing investment and stimulating economic growth. Furthermore, high inward FDI is no guarantee for poverty alleviation and positive growth effects. In particular, the empirical evidence suggests that host‐country conditions typically prevailing in poor countries, including weak institutions and an insufficient endowment of complementary factors of production, constrain the growth‐enhancing and poverty‐alleviating effects of FDI. The crux is that creating an environment in which FDI may deliver social returns will take considerable time exactly where development needs are most pressing.     

Does FDI increase productivity? The role of regulation in upstream industries

In view of substantial changes having taken place in the regulatory environment and in the light of the increasing role of inter industry linkages, we examine whether the total factor productivity (TFP) growth impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) is determined by regulation in upstream sectors. Econometric estimates illustrate that FDI exerts a positive impact on the growth of OECD industries which slows down as upstream regulation rises. To raise the reliability of our estimates, we use instruments for FDI and regulation that are as free as possible of endogenous association with TFP growth. Our instrumental variable estimates verify that the influence of FDI on TFP growth depends negatively on the level of upstream regulation. Non‐parametric estimates confirm that the highest impact of FDI takes place at the lowest levels of entry regulation and public ownership.     

Sovereign wealth fund governance and national culture

As sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are owned and directed by sovereign governments which often have non-economic strategic motives and concomitant lack of transparency, there is much confusion, suspicion, and concern regarding the purpose of their investments. Strategic or non-economic motives for SWF investments are usually conveyed via respective governing boards of directors. Therefore, there is much need for understanding SWF governance. Using data for 49 large SWFs globally, we document significant and economically important evidence of the impact of national culture on SWF governance. Even when controlling for the quality of respective national governance, we find that poorer SWF governance is associated with the cultural dimensions of power distance, individualism, and most likely masculinity; while better SWF governance is associated with long-term orientation, indulgence and uncertainty avoidance. These results are consistent with what others have noted: good governance means different institutional dynamics in different countries (cultures). We also find that SWF governance is negatively associated with greater investment in foreign assets. Policy makers, capital-market participants, and managers will be interested in these results, as SWFs have become large and important global investors.     

Does Post‐ante Investment Experience Matter? Lessons from FDI in China

Ample efforts of FDI literature have researched on the motives and determinants of FDI flows based on ex‐ante conditions. Little has been studied with regard to the effects of post‐ante behaviour in determining future investment decisions. Post‐ante experience of FDI decisions with regard to foreign investors’ satisfaction or dissatisfaction and future profit expectations on recurrent decisions are critical. This paper, thus, attempts to investigate FDI in the context of an emerging market environment with emphasis on how environmental and institutional factors and the micro‐firm effects of how investors’ post‐ante views on profits expectations and investment experience would affect MNCs’ decisions on recurrent investment and firm relocation. Empirical results show that decisions in the short and long run were affected differently by the factors under study. Specifically, the short‐run decisions were more affected by profit expectations while the long run by post‐ante experience on investment satisfaction/dissatisfaction and environmental and institutional determinants.     

The Effect of National Corporate Responsibility Environment on Japanese Foreign Direct Investment

We examine the relationship between Japanese foreign direct investment (FDI) and the national corporate responsibility (NCR) environment in host countries using corporate social responsibility and international business theories. Based on data from the Japanese Government’s Ministry of Finance AccountAbility, and other sources, we find that the level of NCR has a positive relationship with FDI inflow for developing countries. The relationship for developed countries is negative but not statistically significant. The underlying host country development stage moderates the relationship. The results can help deepen understanding of FDI behaviors and have practical implications for host countries in terms of attracting FDI.     

The Effect of Corruption on Japanese Foreign Direct Investment

In an effort to reduce risk and uncertainty, we hypothesize that investors avoid countries where high corruption exists. We investigate this issue by examining the relationship of levels of perceived corruption on Japanese Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in both industrialized and emerging economies. The analysis presented utilizes a sample of 29,546 investments in 59 countries. Results suggest that in emerging nations, where comprehensive legal and regulatory frameworks do not exist to effectively curtail fraudulent activity, corruption serves to reduce FDI. Managers need to consider the level of perceived corruption in their assessment of any market prior to potential investment.     

Sovereign Wealth Funds: Investment and Governance Practices

Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are large, growing, and concentrated investment vehicles, with a current estimated value of U.S. $3 trillion. The combination of low transparency and government ownership has raised questions about political agendas, national security, and transfers of technology. In this article the authors report on the current status of SWFs in terms of investments, regulation, governance, and transparency of activities. They also review some recent studies on SWF investments and their impact on financial markets.     

FDI Inflow and Human Development: Analysis of FDI's Impact on Host Countries' Social Welfare and Infrastructure

We examine the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) and the mediating effects of country national governance on the welfare and knowledge infrastructure of host countries. Based on a five‐year anchored panel data of 175 countries producing over 9,000 observations, we find that in general FDI has a positive influence on both host country welfare and knowledge infrastructure and the national governance positively mediates these relationships.¹ © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

外商直接投资与农业产业安全——基于国内投资与就业挤出效应视角的实证研究

基于国内外的研究成果,提出一种研究外商直接投资对我国农业产业安全影响的新思路。一方面,选用1997年至2009年的相关时间序列数据,构造了联立方程模型,分别利用二阶段最小二乘法(2SLS)和普通最小二乘法(OLS)估计了农业引入外商直接投资对国内投资和就业所产生的挤出效应。实证结果显示,农业实际利用外商直接投资金额增加1%将导致0.2%的国内投资和0.01%的农业就业被挤出;另一方面,基于国内投资与就业挤出效应视角,针对外商直接投资对我国农业产业安全可能产生的影响提出了相应的对策。     

Does good governance matter for FDI inflows? Evidence from Asian economies

This paper examines the effects of the six components of good governance on foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in 15 Asian economies for the period 1996–2007 using a fixed effect model for panel data with heteroskedasticity corrected standard errors. The study also employs the feasible general least square (FGLS) and Prais-Winstein panel estimation methods in order to check the consistency of the results with the fixed effect model. The empirical results reveal that of the six components of good governance, political stability and absence of violence, government effectiveness, rule of law, and control of corruption are the key determinants of FDI inflows, as they exhibit consistent results under different models. However, the study finds no significant evidence with voice and accountability and regulatory quality in FDI inflows. The study reveals that human capital, infrastructure, lending rate, and GDP growth rate also have a significant influence on FDI inflows. We conclude that a country which can enhance its governance environment in general is likely to attract more foreign direct investment despite offsetting deficiencies in other dimensions of good governance such as voice and accountability and regulatory quality.     

Attracting Chinese Foreign Direct Investment to Small,Developed Economies: The Case of Ireland

In response to the unparalleled growth in foreign direct investment (FDI) from China in recent years, we present a multilevel, in‐depth analysis of Chinese investment in Ireland using semi‐structured interviews and case studies. Our findings suggest that while Chinese FDI can be explained to an extent through classical theories of FDI, such investment is unconventional in many regards and thus requires the extension of established theories. We also find that factors above and beyond those that apply to traditional sources of investment are at play in the case of China, including the presence of host‐country clusters, the strength of intergovernmental relations, and the degree of alignment between China's development priorities and the host. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

汇率、贸易壁垒与企业“诱发性”对外投资决策

将汇率冲击、贸易壁垒与"诱发性"对外直接投资置于一个理论框架下,揭示其间的诱发机制与综合传导路径,得出结论如下:跨越贸易壁垒是诱发企业对外投资行为的重要动因,汇率对直接投资流出可能具有"双向性"作用;在遭遇东道国反倾销威胁时,市场规模对企业对外投资的"跨越"动机起到制约作用;企业拥有的成本优势越具备"可转移"特征,越容易"诱发"对外直接投资的形成;行业内产品差异化程度越高,则越能"诱发"企业从事对外投资。     

On the Causal Links Between FDI and Growth in Developing Countries

We analyse the Granger causal relationships between foreign direct investment (FDI) and GDP in a sample of 31 developing countries covering 31 years. Using estimators for heterogeneous panel data we find bi‐directional causality between the FDI‐to‐GDP ratio and the level of GDP. FDI has a lasting impact on GDP, while GDP has no long‐run impact on the FDI‐to‐GDP ratio. In that sense FDI causes growth. Furthermore, in a model for GDP and FDI as a fraction of gross capital formation (GCF) we also find long‐run effects from FDI to GDP. This finding may be interpreted as evidence in favour of the hypotheses that FDI has an impact on GDP via knowledge transfers and adoption of new technology.     

Sectoral FDI,absorptive capacity and economic growth – empirical evidence from Egyptian governorates

Using a novel panel dataset of Egyptian governorates for the period 1992–2007, we investigate the effects of aggregate and sectoral foreign direct investment (FDI) on Egypt’s economic growth. We distinguish between FDI in the manufacturing, agriculture and service sector. The similarity of governorates in terms of institutional characteristics like culture, language and legal framework and the consistency of the data collection process enables an effective estimation of the effect of FDI on Egypt’s economic growth. Employing General Methods of Moments (GMM) panel estimations, we find that neither aggregate nor sectoral FDI has an unconditional effect on economic growth. We also reject human capital as a channel of absorptive capacity, but reveal an interesting effect of FDI in the service sector on economic growth in interaction with domestic private investment (DPI). Service FDI promotes economic growth only if the host governorate has a minimum threshold of DPI to absorb foreign knowledge and technology.     

Foreign Direct Investment,Domestic Investment and Economic Growth in China: A Time Series Analysis

This paper investigates the causal link between foreign direct investment (FDI), domestic investment and economic growth in China for the period 1988–2003 using a multivariate VAR system with error correction model (ECM) and the innovation accounting (variance decomposition and impulse response function analysis) techniques. The results show that while there is a bi‐directional causality between domestic investment and economic growth, there is only a single‐directional causality from FDI to domestic investment and to economic growth. Rather than crowding out domestic investment, FDI is found to be complementary with domestic investment. Thus, FDI has not only assisted in overcoming shortage of capital, it has also stimulated economic growth through complementing domestic investment in China.