FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT,INSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT AND THE CHANGING POLISH PIG INDUSTRY

The world's meat market has had tremendous growth in the past decades. Global meat producers, particularly in developed economies, have grown bigger through expansion, mergers and acquisitions. The livestock markets in less developed countries are particularly the prime targets for investments by these producers. This article looks at foreign direct investment in a transitional economy, using Poland's pig industry as the empirical case study. It argues that such investments not only bring significant changes in the method of producing meat in the host country; they also have particular socio‐political impacts and have thus been met with some level of resistance by local communities. Our study suggests that the relations of foreign firms to the local community are crucial for their long term presence; and these relations are in turn dependent on a gamut of place specific features and the firms' broader corporate philosophy and strategy. In general, foreign firms need to find ways to replicate the kinds of deep social‐economic links between the livestock industry and places that existed in the socialist era. The case studies of American‐owned Agri Plus and Danish‐owned Poldanor illustrate some of the difficulties involved in the foreign investment in the meat industries while demonstrating the viability and possibility of such companies becoming more accepted and welcomed in the local communities.     

Russia's Inward and Outward Foreign Direct Investment: Insights into the Economy

A prominent British economist reviews the recent growth, partner-country composition, and sector composition of foreign direct investment in and out of Russia from a comparative international perspective, based on UNCTAD and Central Bank of Russia data as well as selected case studies. Two hypotheses are tested: that foreign policy significantly affects the host-country pattern of Russia's outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) and that domestic institutions significantly impact the host-country pattern of Russia's OFDI and the sectoral pattern of its inward foreign direct investment (IFDI). Quantitative evidence of foreign-policy influence could not be found, while domestic institutional influences do appear to be present, most notably in the form of system-escaping OFDI.     

CONSIDERING THE SOURCE: DOES THE COUNTRY OF ORIGIN OF FDI MATTER TO ECONOMIC GROWTH?*

ABSTRACT It has long been surmised that firms controlled by different countries may have unequal effects on the host economies in which they locate. By looking at the seven major source countries of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States, we provide empirical evidence that the state growth effects of FDI differ by source country. We attribute these differential growth effects to the relative differences in factor endowments between the source country and the state. The implication of this result is that technology transfer, believed to be the engine of economic growth, becomes more costly the more dissimilar the endowments.     

FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT AND URBAN CONCENTRATIONS: UNBUNDLING SPATIAL LAGS*

ABSTRACT Foreign direct investment (FDI) is seen as a way to import technology and catch up with economic leaders. It is therefore important to understand why some countries attract more investments by multinationals than others. We expand the set of common determinants of FDI with urban agglomerations and ask the question whether the accessibility of market potential and the number of potential investment locations, in the shape of urban concentrations, matters, since the importance of urban agglomeration economies for FDI has not been investigated before. We show that countries with several medium‐sized cities attract more foreign investment, especially if they are close to main agglomerations, but too much concentration (primacy) reduces the inflow of FDI. Moreover, we unbundle spatially lagged FDI by including spatial lags of the determinants of FDI. It is important to disentangle such third‐country effects in order to understand how FDI flows depend on the complex ways in which multinationals fragment sales and production across countries. Using a panel of U.S. affiliates’ sales in foreign countries between 1984 and 1998, we find evidence that cities are important drivers of FDI. Furthermore, third‐country effects suggest that horizontal and complex forms of FDI coexist.     

外资流动的动力学研究——以广东省为例

资本流动受推力、引力和阻力作用,在空间上先向中心城市和交通干线集聚,然后沿城市体系和交通干线作"蛙跳"式、点线式推进,最后向乡村面状扩散。资本流动对流入地区产生正负两方面的影响。投资环境建设和引资工作应针对不同阶段资本流动的特点和驱动因素,采取相应的政策,调控外资流动,减少负面影响,使利用结构合理化。     

Migration and the location of MNE activities: Evidence from Italian provinces

We investigate the migration-inward foreign direct investment (FDI) nexus in narrow geographies. A novel two-stage empirical strategy allows us to investigate the role of migration as a determinant of multinational enterprises (MNEs) location choices and unpick heterogeneity in foreign investors' preferences towards the presence of migrants in the host location. This allows us to shed light on the relative importance of the underlying mechanisms linking migration and inward FDI. Relying on 1113 greenfield investments by 895 MNEs in Italian NUTS3 regions over 2003–2015, we find that immigrants from the country of origin of the investor exert a positive but highly heterogeneous effect on MNE location choices. Investors are more sensitive to the presence of migrants from their country of origin when they lack experience in the destination country (first-time investors) and when their investments concern market-access or business-services (downstream) activities. This is consistent with the view that migrants act as information brokers that bridge the fixed costs of international business activities.     

国际资本流动研究评述

资本流动研究是90年代以来区域经济地理学前沿的研究热点之一,本文通过经济学与地理学在国际资本流动研究方面的比较,指出了目前经济地理学研究中存在的问题,并建议加强资本流入的负面影响研究,外资流入的适度规模研究,资本流动过程研究和动力机制研究。     

Canadian foreign direct investment in the United States by type: mergers and acquisitions, greenfield, real estate, joint ventures and investment increases

This paper provides an overview of Canadian foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States by type. Mergers and acquisitions (M&As), greenfield investments, joint ventures, real estate purchases and increases to existing investments are compared spatially, through time (using a data set that consists of transactions from 1977 to 1994) and by industrial classification. Over this study's time-frame, direct investors from Canada were most likely to perform a real estate or M&A transaction in the United States (and least likely to be involved in a joint venture). The most consequential years for real estate purchases were the 1970s and early 1980s; whereas M&A and greenfield transactions have gained in proportionate importance through time. M&As, greenfield and investment increases were most often enumerated as manufacturing transactions, but mining and consumer and business services were also very common. A series of bivariate regression models established that growing state economies significantly increased M&A, real estate, greenfield and investment increase activity from Canada. Relative regional specializations (as given by location quotients) provided additional spatial information. M&As formed a pattern of specialization that emphasized the Great Lakes region and also the central portion of the US (roughly following the Mississippi River). Greenfield and investment increase transactions favoured states along the east coast and those adjacent to the Canada-US border. Real estate investors were most attracted to the US south and extreme west.     

Human Capital in Low-Tech Manufacturing: The Geography of the Knowledge Economy in Denmark

Abstract

An essential feature associated with the rise of the knowledge economy has been the increasing focus on the importance of human capital as a precondition for economic growth. Human capital has been found to have a positive impact on the economic growth of high-tech industries, however, the influence of human capital on the development of low-tech industries is yet to be analysed. This paper provides such an examination of low-tech industries based on an analysis of employment data within manufacturing industries in Denmark in the period 1993–2006. The findings highlight, first, that human capital appears to be equally important for economic development in low-tech industries and, second, that the divide between the large urban regions, especially Copenhagen, and the rest of the country plays the primary role in explaining the geography of human capital. These findings stress the relevance of a broad conception of the knowledge economy which goes beyond high-tech industries.     

促进还是抑制:中国对非直接投资的对外援助效应

论文聚焦中国对非援助与对非直接投资的不确定性关系,将援助细分为社会基础设施援助、实物资本援助、经济基础设施援助、政府和民间社会援助四种类型,构建了援助与投资的解析模型;基于中国对非洲52个国家的援助项目数和直接投资项目数,利用分位数回归方法,分别考察了中国对非援助项目总量及各类型援助在对非直接投资项目中的作用。研究发现：①中国对非援助集中在东非、南非,援助项目总数、各类型援助项目数、对非直接投资项目的空间分布具有很高的相似性。②中国对非援助类型结构相对均衡,对非援助在中国对非直接投资中发挥着先锋促进效应。其中,经济基础设施援助的促进效应强劲、稳定,且强度随分位数提高有浅U型变动特征;实物资本援助、社会基础设施援助的促进作用分别在对非直接投资项目少、中等数量下促进效果显著;政府和民间援助的促进作用不显著。③友好城市关系、出口关系与双边政治关系分别仅在中国对非直接投资项目较少、中等规模、大规模情形下显著,空间关系的影响不显著。④受援国人口规模的促进影响最清晰、最稳健;成本规避、资源寻求、受援国的投资环境质量和腐败状况的影响尚不清晰。中国在非投资有追随他国投资区位的倾向,但这一倾向仅在经济基础设施模型中显著。     

Cross-border mergers/acquisitions: a review and research agenda

Cross-border mergers/acquisitions account for the bulk of contemporaryforeign direct investment. Their significance, which is reinforcingthe position of transnational corporations as the dominant institutionalforce in the global economy, is related to the nexus of processesimplicated in international economic restructuring. Cross-bordermergers/acquisitions are, therefore, important influences uponthe evolution of the space economy, but this perspective onmerger/acquisition activity has been neglected in academic research.This review makes connections between disparate literaturesto identify potential lines of enquiry and attempts to situatethese lines of enquiry within current research agendas in economicgeography. On a basic level, mergers/acquisitions create newcorporate geographies which represent valid objects of researchin the geography of enterprise tradition. However, these corporategeographies are set within the institutional context of social,economic, and political relations. Many of the most interestingresearch questions derive from these contextual relations whichare addressed with reference to issues of embeddedness at variousgeographical scales and also by linking these issues to aspectsof employment and territorial development.     

中哈经贸发展与国际环境

哈萨克斯坦是资源丰富、战略地位重要的中亚国家。独立后成为东西方投资的热点和竞争的市场。本文通过对哈经济现状及其与俄罗斯、西方国家和伊斯兰世界关系的分析,全面阐述了中哈经贸联系的历史、现状和前景,特别强调两国连接欧亚大陆桥的地缘优势。作者认为发展国际关系、保持过境运输通畅与推动经贸合作是密切相关的,三者缺一不可。     

Patterns of Foreign Direct Investment in Mongolia, 1990-2003: A Research Note

This paper delineates the pattern and structure of foreign direct investment (FDI) in a land-locked transition economy, Mongolia, situated strategically between Russia and China. The assessment is based on publications of major international financial institutions, official statistical publications of the Mongolian Government, and a unique dataset of 1,035 FDI firms based on a database compiled by the Mongolian office of the World Bank. A structured analysis of the dataset and government statistical publications makes it possible to ascertain patterns with respect to FDI country origin, sectoral composition, mode of entry, firm capitalization, composition of foreign and local partners, entry date, and location of the investment (core versus periphery). Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: E60, F21, P33. 5 figures, 3 tables, 34 references.     

Deal or no deal: the outlook for agricultural land investment in Africa

Recent sharp increases in food prices have prompted some food-importing countries to promote the acquisition of farmland abroad as a strategy to secure food supplies at affordable prices. Businesses are recognizing new opportunities for strong returns from agricultural investment, including agri-food, biofuels and other agricultural commodities. Dubbed 'land grabs' in the press, large-scale land acquisitions have kindled much international debate, in which strong positions are taken on the impacts of such investments on the environment, rights, sovereignty, livelihoods, development and conflict at local, national and international levels. This article provides an analysis of this complex and shifting situation, focusing on Africa and drawing on quantitative inventories of land acquisitions in four countries and on a small sample of land deals. The article lays out key trends and drivers, and discusses the main features of international land deals before analysing the main risks and opportunities involved, focusing on implications for local, national and global food security. The article concludes by outlining practical steps to make the renewed momentum in agricultural investment work for development, and avoid the pitfalls of exacerbated political tensions.     

Intrametropolitan Location of Producer-service FDI in Istanbul

For the purpose of increasing the capacity of foreign trade and attracting more foreign capital, Turkey began to modify its relevant economic laws and institutions in the 1980s. This restructural process proved its success, increasing the number of firms with foreign capital operating in Turkey 29 times between 1980 and 1997. However, considering other developing countries on a global scale, this increase rate was less than expected. When the conjuncture of global political systems undergoing dramatic changes since the previous century is regarded carefully, entering the twenty-first century as a country still in the process of developing, it is most probable that Turkey will become a country of significant power in this century with its historical, geographical, ethnic, and economic potentials in the Balkans, Middle Eastern and Caucasian regions. Due to the emergence of new opportunities in the Middle East, the Turkic Republics, Ukraine and the Federation of Russia since the beginning of the 1990s, in order to preserve its external appeal, Turkey has been obliged to adapt to the changes in the goals of this area. With the advantage of being a coastal city positioned at the crossroads of trade routes throughout history, Istanbul has been the centre of commercial control and coordination. Today the advantage of its geographical position makes Istanbul an important centre preferred by global capital for reaching local markets and resources. In other words, Istanbul is a candidate to be the centre of the functions of control and accessibility within these interregional networks. In this respect, the pattern of foreign direct investment (FDI) in producer services has been investigated. This paper represents a portion of the research conducted in Istanbul by Istanbul Technical University.     

The Republic of Korea's Foreign Direct Investments in Australia: The Chaebols Down Under

The objective is to explain why the total value of foreign direct investment (FDI) from the Republic of Korea (hereafter ‘Korea’) remains small in Australia. Internationalisation of Korean production has proceeded rapidly since 1987 following changes in both the domestic and international business environments. Total outgoing FDI increased from US$ 356 million in 1987 to US$ 1,600 million in 1990. Australia, in comparison, received a cumulative FDI of only US$ 128 million in 1990. In terms of Korean FDI, Australia is a marginal location. Low FDI from Korea occurred despite being given priority status by Austrade in 1990 as a source for overseas capital and both countries being in each others top ten export destinations since 1989. Australia as a host nation for Korean corporations (chaebols) is discussed within Edgington's (1988) and Porters (1985) theoretical frameworks which consider overseas investment strategies.     

Foreign Direct Investment and Democratic Development in the Russian Provinces: A Preliminary Analysis

Foreign investment in Russia has consistently lagged behind East European countries throughout the last decade. Although formidable obstacles to attracting foreign investment remain throughout the country, some of Russia's 89 provinces have been more successful than others in creating attractive investment environments. One reason for this varied success may be related to the degree of economic and political elite consensus that exists in some regions. This, in turn, may help in the formulation of incentives to attract foreign investors. However, the political consensus that helps to establish a stable policy environment for foreign investment may well imperil pluralistic political development in the long run. Thus, we must be wary of conflating foreign investor interest with liberal politics and democratic development in Russia's regions.     

THE RELEVANCE OF THE WORLD‐SYSTEM APPROACH IN THE ERA OF GLOBALIZATION OF ECONOMIC FLOWS AND NETWORKS

Is world‐systems analysis of any relevance to present‐day economic flows? By using methods in line with the world‐system and dependence theories, we show that economic flows – trade and foreign direct investment – still deeply separate core and peripheries. On the one hand, through the analysis of the trade by products, we show that core countries hold on to a higher position in the international division of labour. On the other hand, by using network method, we highlight that core countries are still characterized by the intensity of their reciprocal relations while peripheral countries have few economic relations with a limited number of core countries. Moreover, the article demonstrates that this core–periphery division of the world has not lost its pertinence; it is as relevant as at the end of the sixties. In the current era of globalization, economic flows are still deeply structured by basic power relations between core and peripheries. However, the article also develops a theoretical framework to understand dynamics of the world‐system and insists on the emergence of Eastern Asia as a new core area, notably by showing the rising position of some East Asian countries in the international division of labour. We conclude by underlying the necessity to integrate world‐system and global network theoretical frameworks.     

国家高新区功能演化与发展对策研究——以南京高新区为例

本文以南京高新技术产业开发区为例,分析了高新区的功能演化过程及其动力机制。根据国家高新区建设创新型园区的战略目标和南京高新技术产业开发区"二次创业"的功能定位,提出高新区应该坚持城市化、集聚化、内外资并重三大战略路径,积极实施产业集聚与优化、总部基地经济战略等五大战略,推进高新区功能的持续发展和提升。