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Corruption and subsidiary profitability: US MNC subsidiaries in the Asia Pacific region

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  • Seung-Hyun Lee
  • Sungjin Hong

Abstract

Would multinational corporation (MNC) subsidiaries be more profitable in host countries where corruption is less severe? Would MNC subsidiaries be more profitable in less corrupt countries if they focus on local sales? This paper examines the impact of the level of corruption on the profitability of US MNCs in the Asia Pacific region. Using foreign direct investment (FDI) data archived by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis and corruption data reported by the World Bank, we find that MNC subsidiaries located in countries with a lower level of corruption are more profitable. In addition, MNC subsidiaries with a greater focus on local sales are more profitable when the corruption level is low. This study contributes to the literature by showing that when local sales are important to MNC subsidiaries, a lower level of corruption by host countries positively affects the profitability of the MNC subsidiaries. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2012

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  • Seung-Hyun Lee & Sungjin Hong, 2012. "Corruption and subsidiary profitability: US MNC subsidiaries in the Asia Pacific region," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 29(4), pages 949-964, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:asiapa:v:29:y:2012:i:4:p:949-964
    DOI: 10.1007/s10490-010-9214-8
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    Cited by:

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    6. Wu, Yan & Yang, Yong & Mickiewicz, Tomasz, 2023. "Corruption, the digital sectors, and the profitability of foreign subsidiaries in emerging markets," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    7. Yang, Kaiyuan & Ma, Pengcheng & Cui, Lin, 2021. "Subnational corruption and foreign firms’ performance: Evidence from China," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 106-116.
    8. Kim, Huong Trang & Papanastassiou, Marina & Nguyen, Quang, 2017. "Multinationals and the impact of corruption on financial derivatives use and firm value: Evidence from East Asia," Journal of Multinational Financial Management, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 39-59.
    9. Cooke, Fang Lee & Wang, Jingtian & Wood, Geoffrey, 2022. "A vulnerable victim or a tacit participant? Extending the field of multinationals and corruption research," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(1).
    10. Charlotte Karam & David Ralston & Carolyn Egri & Arif Butt & Narasimhan Srinivasan & Ping Fu & Chay Lee & Yong-lin Moon & Yongjuan Li & Mahfooz Ansari & Christine Kuo & Vu Hung & Andre Pekerti & Phili, 2013. "Perceptions of the ethicality of favors at work in Asia: An 11-society assessment," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 373-408, June.
    11. Byung Il Park & Sungjin J. Hong & Shufeng Simon Xiao, 2022. "Institutional pressure and MNC compliance to prevent bribery: empirical examinations in South Korea and China," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 21(4), pages 623-656, September.
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    13. Bahoo, Salman & Alon, Ilan & Paltrinieri, Andrea, 2020. "Corruption in international business: A review and research agenda," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(4).
    14. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Dieleman, Marleen & Hirsch, Paul & Rodrigues, Suzana B. & Zyglidopoulos, Stelios, 2021. "Multinationals’ misbehavior," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 56(5).
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    17. Kouznetsov, Alex & Kim, Sarah & Wright, Chris, 2019. "An audit of received international business corruption literature for logic, consistency, completeness of coverage," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(4).

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