IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v14y2017i9p985-d110366.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Determinants of FDI Localization in China: A County-Level Analysis for the Pharmaceutical Industry

Author

Listed:
  • Su Li

    (Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1954 Huashan Road, Shanghai 200030, China)

  • Antonio Angelino

    (Department of Economics and Management, University of Ferrara, Via Voltapaletto 11, 44121 Ferrara, Italy)

  • Haitao Yin

    (Antai College of Economics and Management, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 1954 Huashan Road, Shanghai 200030, China)

  • Francesca Spigarelli

    (China Center, University of Macerata, Via Piaggia dell’Università 2, 62100 Macerata, Italy)

Abstract

Foreign direct investments (FDIs) have been widely recognized as a crucial feature of the Chinese industrial development process. Over the past decades, China has been attracting huge amounts of inward FDIs as a consequence of both spontaneous market dynamics and place-based preferential policies at the sub-national level. However, the Chinese market exhibits large dissimilarities in terms of FDI localization across territories that are worth investigating at a more disaggregated level. In this regards, our study explores the determinants of attraction of inward FDIs in China, at the county level. It focuses on the pharmaceutical industry and attempts to assess whether factors related to location advantages, agglomeration dynamics, information cost effects and environmental regulation costs affect foreign firms’ localization choices as well as invested amounts in that location. By means of discrete choice models, our paper confirms the findings of the prevalent literature about the positive effects of location advantages on pharmaceutical FDI attraction. Different from our expectations, a higher proportion of foreign enterprises do not stimulate significant effects on FDI localization, while preferential policies and sectoral agglomeration are positively correlated with the localization of pharmaceutical foreign firms. Finally, our results suggest that investing firms tend to avoid areas with strict environment regulation.

Suggested Citation

  • Su Li & Antonio Angelino & Haitao Yin & Francesca Spigarelli, 2017. "Determinants of FDI Localization in China: A County-Level Analysis for the Pharmaceutical Industry," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-20, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:14:y:2017:i:9:p:985-:d:110366
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/9/985/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/14/9/985/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Yuko Kinoshita & Ashoka Mody, 2001. "Private information for foreign investment in emerging economies," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 34(2), pages 448-464, May.
    2. Jiangyong Lu & Xiaohui Liu & Mike Wright & Igor Filatotchev, 2014. "International experience and FDI location choices of Chinese firms: The moderating effects of home country government support and host country institutions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 45(4), pages 428-449, May.
    3. Sergio Mariotti & Lucia Piscitello, 1995. "Information Costs and Location of FDIs within the Host Country: Empirical Evidence from Italy," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 26(4), pages 815-841, December.
    4. Head, Keith & Ries, John, 1996. "Inter-City Competition for Foreign Investment: Static and Dynamic Effects of China's Incentive Areas," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 38-60, July.
    5. Dunning, John H, 1973. "The Determinants of International Production," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 25(3), pages 289-336, November.
    6. Canfei He, 2003. "Location of foreign manufacturers in China: Agglomeration economies and country of origin effects," Economics of Governance, Springer, vol. 82(3), pages 351-372, September.
    7. Yeung, Henry Wai-chung & Liu, Weidong & Dicken, Peter, 2006. "Transnational corporations and network effects of a local manufacturing cluster in mobile telecommunications equipment in China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 520-540, March.
    8. Zhang, Kevin Honglin, 2014. "How does foreign direct investment affect industrial competitiveness? Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 530-539.
    9. Belderbos, Rene & Carree, Martin, 2002. "The Location of Japanese Investments in China: Agglomeration Effects, Keiretsu, and Firm Heterogeneity," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 16(2), pages 194-211, June.
    10. Omar Belkhodja & Muhammad Mohiuddin & Egide Karuranga, 2017. "The determinants of FDI location choice in China: a discrete-choice analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(13), pages 1241-1254, March.
    11. Yuko Kinoshita & Ashoka Mody, 2001. "Private information for foreign investment in emerging economies," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 34(2), pages 448-464, May.
    12. Dunning, John H., 2000. "The eclectic paradigm as an envelope for economic and business theories of MNE activity," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 9(2), pages 163-190, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Shihong Zeng & Ya Zhou, 2021. "Foreign Direct Investment’s Impact on China’s Economic Growth, Technological Innovation and Pollution," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(6), pages 1-24, March.
    2. Yinhao Wu & Changhong Miao & Jianming Miao & Yan Zhang, 2020. "How Does Environmental Regulation Affect the Location of New Polluting Firms? Exploring the Agglomeration Threshold of Effective Environmental Regulation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-16, February.
    3. O. V. Kuznetsova & R. O. Bobrovsky, 2022. "Location of the Largest Pharmaceutical Companies in Russia: Contribution to Regional Divergence or Convergence?," Regional Research of Russia, Springer, vol. 12(2), pages 124-132, June.
    4. Mohd Shahidan Shaari & Muhamad Huzaifah Asbullah & Noorazeela Zainol Abidin & Zulkefly Abdul Karim & Benjamin Nangle, 2023. "Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment in ASEAN+3 Countries: The Role of Environmental Degradation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-14, January.
    5. Wanfu Jin & Chunshan Zhou, 2022. "Effect of Land Marketization Level and Land Prices on Foreign Direct Investment in China," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-20, August.
    6. Yinhao Wu & Shumin Yu & Xiangdong Duan, 2021. "The Impact of Environmental Regulation on the Location of Pollution-Intensive Industries in China under Agglomeration Effect," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-14, April.
    7. Marek Csabay & Zuzana Vincúrová & Milan Stoch & Beáta Stehlíková, 2021. "Enterprise ownership patterns in the least developed districts of Slovakia," Equilibrium. Quarterly Journal of Economics and Economic Policy, Institute of Economic Research, vol. 16(4), pages 807-838, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Canfei He, 2008. "Foreign Manufacturing Investment in China: The Role of Industrial Agglomeration and Industrial Linkages," China & World Economy, Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, vol. 16(1), pages 82-99, January.
    2. Nielsen, Bo Bernhard & Asmussen, Christian Geisler & Weatherall, Cecilie Dohlmann, 2017. "The location choice of foreign direct investments: Empirical evidence and methodological challenges," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 62-82.
    3. George Shih-Ku Chen, 2009. "Determinants Of Taiwanese Investment In China: An Agglomeration Economies-Based Perspective," Monash Economics Working Papers 01-09, Monash University, Department of Economics.
    4. Chen, George Shih-Ku, 2009. "Determinants of Taiwanese investment in China: An agglomeration economies-based perspective," MPRA Paper 13894, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Shima'a Hanafy, 2015. "Determinants of FDI Location in Egypt—Empirical Analysis Using Governorate Panel Data," MAGKS Papers on Economics 201513, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung).
    6. Blanc-Brude, Frédéric & Cookson, Graham & Piesse, Jenifer & Strange, Roger, 2014. "The FDI location decision: Distance and the effects of spatial dependence," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 797-810.
    7. Shima’a Hanafy, 2014. "Determinants of FDI Location in Egypt: Empirical Analysis Using Governorate Panel Data," Working Papers 875, Economic Research Forum, revised Nov 2014.
    8. Lisha He, 2022. "Spatial Linkages in Chinese Service and Manufacturing Outward Fdi: Empirical Evidence From the United States," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 113(5), pages 450-468, December.
    9. Chen, George Shih-Ku, 2009. "Agglomeration economies and the location of Taiwanese investment in China," MPRA Paper 13896, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. Yi Liu & Cecil Pearson, 2011. "The Determining Factors of Western Australia’s (WA) Foreign Investment in China," Global Business Review, International Management Institute, vol. 12(1), pages 1-20, February.
    11. Shaoming Cheng, 2007. "Structure of Firm Location Choices: An Examination of Japanese Greenfield Investment in China," Asian Economic Journal, East Asian Economic Association, vol. 21(1), pages 47-73, March.
    12. Canfei He & Fenghua Pan, 2010. "Economic Transition, Dynamic Externalities and City-industry Growth in China," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 47(1), pages 121-144, January.
    13. repec:rre:publsh:v:38:y:2008:i:3:p:395-415 is not listed on IDEAS
    14. Roger Strange & Igor Filatotchev & Yung-chih Lien & Jenifer Piesse, 2009. "Insider Control and the FDI Location Decision," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 49(4), pages 433-454, September.
    15. Du, Julan & Lu, Yi & Tao, Zhigang, 2012. "Institutions and FDI location choice: The role of cultural distances," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 210-223.
    16. Zhihua Xu & Anthony Yeh, 2013. "Origin Effects, Spatial Dynamics and Redistribution of FDI In Guangdong, China," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 104(4), pages 439-455, September.
    17. Yuko Hashimoto & Konstantin M. Wacker, 2012. "The Role of Risk and Information for International Capital Flows: New Evidence from the SDDS," Courant Research Centre: Poverty, Equity and Growth - Discussion Papers 124, Courant Research Centre PEG.
    18. Yamashita, Nobuaki & Matsuura, Toshiyuki & Nakajima, Kentaro, 2014. "Agglomeration effects of inter-firm backward and forward linkages: Evidence from Japanese manufacturing investment in China," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 24-41.
    19. Chris Wagner, 2020. "Deducing a state-of-the-art presentation of the Eclectic Paradigm from four decades of development: a systematic literature review," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 70(1), pages 51-96, February.
    20. Shaoming Cheng, 2008. "How can western China attract FDI? A case of Japanese investment," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 42(2), pages 357-374, June.
    21. Zhang, Tingting (Grace) & You, Yu, 2021. "Scale or efficiency? Performance shortfall and engagement in production activities of foreign subsidiaries in China," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(1).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:14:y:2017:i:9:p:985-:d:110366. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.