IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/eti/dpaper/05012.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The Role of Multinational Firms in International Trade: The Case of Japan

Author

Listed:
  • Kozo Kiyota
  • Shujiro Urata

Abstract

This paper examines the role of multinational firms in international trade, using firm-level panel data for Japanese firms between 1994 and 2000. Our results indicate that multinational firms dominate Japanese trade. In 2000, only 13.8 percent of Japanese firms were multinationals but they accounted for 95.1 and 85.4 percent of Japanese exports and imports, respectively. Multinational firms are found to have emerged from being exporters/importers. These results imply that firms do not make the choice of either exports or FDI, unlike the findings of previous studies. Rather, exporters make a decision on whether or not to undertake FDI.

Suggested Citation

  • Kozo Kiyota & Shujiro Urata, 2005. "The Role of Multinational Firms in International Trade: The Case of Japan," Discussion papers 05012, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    • Handle: RePEc:eti:dpaper:05012
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.rieti.go.jp/jp/publications/dp/05e012.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nishimura, Kiyohiko G. & Nakajima, Takanobu & Kiyota, Kozo, 2005. "Does the natural selection mechanism still work in severe recessions?: Examination of the Japanese economy in the 1990s," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 58(1), pages 53-78, September.
    2. Bernard, Andrew B. & Bradford Jensen, J., 1999. "Exceptional exporter performance: cause, effect, or both?," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 1-25, February.
    3. Andrew B. Bernard & Jonathan Eaton & J. Bradford Jensen & Samuel Kortum, 2003. "Plants and Productivity in International Trade," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(4), pages 1268-1290, September.
    4. Elhanan Helpman & Marc J. Melitz & Stephen R. Yeaple, 2003. "Export versus FDI," NBER Working Papers 9439, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Head, Keith & Ries, John, 2001. "Overseas Investment and Firm Exports," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 108-122, February.
    6. Kiyota, Kozo & Urata, Shujiro, 2008. "The role of multinational firms in international trade: The case of Japan," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 338-352, August.
    7. Bruce A. Blonigen, 2019. "In Search of Substitution Between Foreign Production and Exports," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foreign Direct Investment, chapter 9, pages 293-323, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    8. Sofronis K. Clerides & Saul Lach & James R. Tybout, 1998. "Is Learning by Exporting Important? Micro-Dynamic Evidence from Colombia, Mexico, and Morocco," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 113(3), pages 903-947.
    9. Rafael Rob & Nikolaos Vettas, 2003. "Foreign Direct Investment and Exports with Growing Demand," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 70(3), pages 629-648.
    10. Elhanan Helpman & Marc J. Melitz & Stephen R. Yeaple, 2004. "Export Versus FDI with Heterogeneous Firms," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(1), pages 300-316, March.
    11. Clausing, Kimberly A, 2000. "Does Multinational Activity Displace Trade?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 38(2), pages 190-205, April.
    12. John Baldwin & Wulong Gu, 2003. "Export-market participation and productivity performance in Canadian manufacturing," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 36(3), pages 634-657, August.
    13. Lipsey, Robert E & Weiss, Merle Yahr, 1984. "Foreign Production and Exports of Individual Firms," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 66(2), pages 304-308, May.
    14. Robert E. Lipsey & Eric D. Ramstetter & Magnus Blomstrom, 2000. "Outward FDI and Parent Exports and Employment: Japan, the United States, and Sweden," NBER Working Papers 7623, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    15. Yamawaki, Hideki, 1991. "Exports and Foreign Distributional Activities: Evidence on Japanese Firms in the United States," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 73(2), pages 294-300, May.
    16. Head, Keith & Ries, John, 2003. "Heterogeneity and the FDI versus export decision of Japanese manufacturers," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 17(4), pages 448-467, December.
    17. Fukunari Kimura & Kozo Kiyota, 2006. "Exports, FDI, and Productivity: Dynamic Evidence from Japanese Firms," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 142(4), pages 695-719, December.
    18. Keith Head & John Ries, 2001. "Overseas Investment and Firm Exports," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 108-122, February.
    19. Sourafel Girma & Richard Kneller & Mauro Pisu, 2005. "Exports versus FDI: An Empirical Test," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 141(2), pages 193-218, July.
    20. Caves, Douglas W & Christensen, Laurits R & Diewert, W Erwin, 1982. "Multilateral Comparisons of Output, Input, and Productivity Using Superlative Index Numbers," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(365), pages 73-86, March.
    21. David Greenaway & Richard Kneller, 2007. "Firm heterogeneity, exporting and foreign direct investment," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 117(517), pages 134-161, February.
    22. Lipsey, Robert E & Weiss, Merle Yahr, 1981. "Foreign Production and Exports in Manufacturing Industries," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 63(4), pages 488-494, November.
    23. Andrew B. Bernard & J. Bradford Jensen & Peter K. Schott, 2009. "Importers, Exporters and Multinationals: A Portrait of Firms in the U.S. that Trade Goods," NBER Chapters, in: Producer Dynamics: New Evidence from Micro Data, pages 513-552, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    24. Roberts, Mark J & Tybout, James R, 1997. "The Decision to Export in Colombia: An Empirical Model of Entry with Sunk Costs," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 87(4), pages 545-564, September.
    25. Cowling, Keith & Tomlinson, Philip R, 2000. "The Japanese Crisis--A Case of Strategic Failure?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 110(464), pages 358-381, June.
    26. Andrew Bernard & Joachim Wagner, 2001. "Export entry and exit by German firms," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 137(1), pages 105-123, March.
    27. Keith Head & John Ries, 2004. "Exporting and FDI as Alternative Strategies," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 20(3), pages 409-423, Autumn.
    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. HOSONO Kaoru & MIYAKAWA Daisuke & TAKIZAWA Miho, 2015. "Learning by Export: Does the presence of foreign affiliate companies matter?," Discussion papers 15053, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    2. Jörn Kleinert & Farid Toubal, 2013. "Production versus distribution-oriented FDI," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 149(3), pages 423-442, September.
    3. Fukunari Kimura & Kozo Kiyota, 2006. "Exports, FDI, and Productivity: Dynamic Evidence from Japanese Firms," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 142(4), pages 695-719, December.
    4. Emmanuel Dhyne & Selen Sarisoy Guerin, 2014. "Outward foreign direct investment and domestic performance : In search of a causal link," Working Paper Research 272, National Bank of Belgium.
    5. Kiyota, Kozo & Urata, Shujiro, 2008. "The role of multinational firms in international trade: The case of Japan," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 338-352, August.
    6. Hing, Vutha & Thangavelu, Shandre M. & Kong, Ratha, 2023. "Technology, Innovation, and Firm Competitiveness: Firm Level Analysis in Cambodia," ADBI Working Papers 1353, Asian Development Bank Institute.
    7. Aw, Bee Yan & Lee, Yi, 2008. "Firm heterogeneity and location choice of Taiwanese multinationals," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 76(2), pages 403-415, December.
    8. Rogelio V. Mercado, Jr. & Ryan Jacildo & Sanchita Basu Das, 2022. "US Dollar Dominance in Asia's Trade Invoicing," Working Papers wp45, South East Asian Central Banks (SEACEN) Research and Training Centre.
    9. TANAKA Ayumu, 2013. "Firm Productivity and Exports in the Wholesale Sector: Evidence from Japan," Discussion papers 13007, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    10. Kozo Kiyota & Toshiyuki Matsuura, 2006. "Why Is Multinational Status Important? Evidence from Job Creation and Job Destruction in Japan," Working Papers 555, Research Seminar in International Economics, University of Michigan.
    11. Shujiro Urata & Misa Okabe, 2009. "The Impacts Of Free Trade Agreements On Trade Flows: An Application Of The Gravity Model Approach," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Christopher Findlay & Shujiro Urata (ed.), Free Trade Agreements In The Asia Pacific, chapter 6, pages 195-239, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    12. Ivan DESEATNICOV & Konstantin KUCHERYAVYY, 2018. "Role of Past Experience and Intra-firm Trade in FDI Decisions," Discussion papers 18051, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    13. KIYOTA Kozo & MATSUURA Toshiyuki & Lionel NESTA, 2016. "Understanding the Cross-country Productivity Gap of Exporters," Discussion papers 16019, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    14. Ghahroudi Mehdi Rasouli & Chong Li Choy, 2020. "The Macroeconomic Determinants and the Impact of Sanctions on FDI in Iran," Economics and Business, Sciendo, vol. 34(1), pages 15-34, February.
    15. Kiyota, Kozo & Matsuura, Toshiyuki & Urata, Shujiro & Wei, Yuhong, 2008. "Reconsidering the Backward Vertical Linkages of Foreign Affiliates: Evidence from Japanese Multinationals," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 36(8), pages 1398-1414, August.
    16. Ivan Deseatnicov & Konstantin Kucheryavyy & Kyoji Fukao, . "Exports, trade costs and FDI entry: evidence from Japanese firms," UNCTAD Transnational Corporations Journal, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
    17. Fulvio Castellacci, 2014. "Service innovation and the proximity-concentration trade-off model of trade and FDI," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(1), pages 92-108, January.
    18. Aw, Bee Yan & Lee, Yi, 2008. "Firm heterogeneity and location choice of Taiwanese multinationals," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(1), pages 167-179, May.
    19. ITO Keiko & LECHEVALIER Se'bastien, 2010. "Why Do Some Firms Persistently Outperform Others? An investigation of the interactions between innovation and export strategies," Discussion papers 10037, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    20. Tomohiko Inui & Toshiyuki Matsuura & Sandra Poncet, 2008. "The Location of Japanese MNC Affiliates: Agglomeration, Spillovers and Firm Heterogeneity," Working Papers 2008-24, CEPII research center.
    21. Ivan DESEATNICOV & Konstantin KUCHERYAVYY, 2017. "Exports and FDI Entry Decision: Evidence from Japanese foreign-affiliated firms," Discussion papers 17036, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    22. WAKASUGI Ryuhei & TODO Yasuyuki & SATO Hitoshi & NISHIOKA Shuichiro & MATSUURA Toshiyuki & ITO Banri & TANAKA Ayumu, 2008. "The Internationalization of Japanese Firms: New Findings Based on Firm-Level Data," Discussion papers 08036, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).

    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. Emmanuel Dhyne & Selen Sarisoy Guerin, 2014. "Outward foreign direct investment and domestic performance : In search of a causal link," Working Paper Research 272, National Bank of Belgium.
    2. Nishitateno, Shuhei, 2013. "Global production sharing and the FDI–trade nexus: New evidence from the Japanese automobile industry," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 27(C), pages 64-80.
    3. Joel Rodrigue, 2014. "Multinational Production, Exports and Aggregate Productivity," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 17(2), pages 243-261, April.
    4. Elhanan Helpman, 2006. "Trade, FDI, and the Organization of Firms," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 44(3), pages 589-630, September.
    5. Prajukta Tripathy & Pragyanrani Behera & Bikash Ranjan Mishra, 2023. "Study of linkages between productivity, export, and outward foreign direct investment: An empirical perspective of Indian manufacturing industries," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 28(2), pages 1527-1548, April.
    6. Richard Kneller & Mauro Pisu & Zhihong Yu, 2008. "Overseas business costs and firm export performance," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 41(2), pages 639-669, May.
    7. Martin Kliem & Alexander Kriwoluzky, 2014. "Toward a Taylor Rule for Fiscal Policy," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 17(2), pages 294-302, April.
    8. Todo, Yasuyuki & Sato, Hitoshi, 2014. "Effects of presidents’ characteristics on internationalization of small and medium firms in Japan," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 236-255.
    9. WAKASUGI Ryuhei & TODO Yasuyuki & SATO Hitoshi & NISHIOKA Shuichiro & MATSUURA Toshiyuki & ITO Banri & TANAKA Ayumu, 2008. "The Internationalization of Japanese Firms: New Findings Based on Firm-Level Data," Discussion papers 08036, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    10. Flora Bellone & Patrick Musso & Lionel Nesta & Michel Quere, 2008. "The U-Shaped Productivity Dynamics of French Exporters," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 144(4), pages 636-659, December.
    11. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/6128 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Idrisova, Vittoria (Идрисова, Виттория), 2017. "Determinants of Value-Added Exports: The Role of Import Demand Factors [Детерминанты Экспорта Добавленной Стоимости: Роль Факторов Спроса На Импорт]," Working Papers 051715, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.
    13. Chen, Maggie Xiaoyang & Moore, Michael O., 2010. "Location decision of heterogeneous multinational firms," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2), pages 188-199, March.
    14. Joachim Wagner, 2016. "Exports and Productivity: A Survey of the Evidence from Firm Level Data," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Microeconometrics of International Trade, chapter 1, pages 3-41, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    15. Yushi Yoshida & Hiro Ito, 2006. "How Do the Asian Economies Compete With Japan in the US Market? Is China Exceptional? A Triangular Trade Approach," Asia Pacific Business Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(3), pages 285-307, July.
    16. Xiong, Tingting, 2022. "The Effect of Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) on the extensive and intensive margins of exports," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 68-79.
    17. Matthew A. Cole & Robert J. R. Elliott & Supreeya Virakul, 2010. "Firm Heterogeneity, Origin of Ownership and Export Participation," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 264-291, February.
    18. Richard Harris & Qian Cher Li, 2007. "Learning-by-Exporting? Firm-Level Evidence for UK Manufacturing and Services Sectors," Working Papers 2007_22, Business School - Economics, University of Glasgow.
    19. Gopinath, Munisamy & Sheldon, Ian M. & Echeverria, Rodrigo, 2007. "Firm Heterogeneity and International Trade: Implications for Agricultural and Food Industries," Trade Issues Papers 9349, International Agricultural Trade Research Consortium.
    20. Girma, Sourafel & Gorg, Holger & Strobl, Eric, 2004. "Exports, international investment, and plant performance: evidence from a non-parametric test," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 83(3), pages 317-324, June.
    21. Q Li & S Girma, "undated". "Exporting, FDI, and Labour Demand Adjustment: Evidence from the UK Manufacturing," Working Papers 2006_18, Business School - Economics, University of Glasgow.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • F10 - International Economics - - Trade - - - General
    • F20 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - General
    • D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Theory

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:eti:dpaper:05012. 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: TANIMOTO, Toko (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/rietijp.html .

    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.