IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/plo/pone00/0314232.html

Does foreign direct investment affect environmental degradation: Evidence from largest carbon intense countries

Author

Listed:
  • Ozlem Kutlu Furtuna
  • Selin Atis

Abstract

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and environmental degradation are some of the most controversial debates, especially in the context of global warming and climate change. This study aims to shed light on the impact of FDI on environmental degradation in the countries with the highest carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, taking into account 513 country-years between the years 1996 and 2022. CO2 and the ecological footprint were used as indicators of environmental degradation. The possible non-linear linkage between FDI and environmental degradation has also been analyzed. Gross domestic product (GDP) growth and inflation rate were used as control variables. The results of the panel data analysis show a U-shaped relationship between FDI and carbon emissions which means carbon emissions decrease to a certain level with increasing FDI investment and after this level, increasing FDI increases the environmental degradation in terms of carbon emissions. Moreover, FDI and the non-linear form of FDI have no significant influence on ecological footprint. This study also highlights the importance of international agreements and frameworks, such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement, in guiding nations towards a more sustainable future. These empirical results are vital for regulators, emphasizing the need for a holistic and multidimensional approach to both economic prosperity and environmental protection.

Suggested Citation

  • Ozlem Kutlu Furtuna & Selin Atis, 2024. "Does foreign direct investment affect environmental degradation: Evidence from largest carbon intense countries," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 19(11), pages 1-14, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0314232
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0314232
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0314232
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0314232&type=printable
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1371/journal.pone.0314232?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jerry Hausman, 2015. "Specification tests in econometrics," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 38(2), pages 112-134.
    2. John C. Driscoll & Aart C. Kraay, 1998. "Consistent Covariance Matrix Estimation With Spatially Dependent Panel Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 80(4), pages 549-560, November.
    3. Judith M. Dean & Mary E. Lovely & Hua Wang, 2017. "Are foreign investors attracted to weak environmental regulations? Evaluating the evidence from China," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Mary E Lovely (ed.), International Economic Integration and Domestic Performance, chapter 9, pages 155-167, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Mirziyoyeva, Ziroat & Salahodjaev, Raufhon, 2022. "Renewable energy and CO2 emissions intensity in the top carbon intense countries," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 192(C), pages 507-512.
    5. Brian R. Copeland & M. Scott Taylor, 2004. "Trade, Growth, and the Environment," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 42(1), pages 7-71, March.
    6. Robert Engle & Clive Granger, 2015. "Co-integration and error correction: Representation, estimation, and testing," Applied Econometrics, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), vol. 39(3), pages 106-135.
    7. Singhania, Monica & Saini, Neha, 2021. "Demystifying pollution haven hypothesis: Role of FDI," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 516-528.
    8. Robert Hoffmann & Chew-Ging Lee & Bala Ramasamy & Matthew Yeung, 2005. "FDI and pollution: a granger causality test using panel data," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(3), pages 311-317.
    9. Joysri Acharyya, 2009. "Fdi, Growth And The Environment: Evidence From India On Co2 Emission During The Last Two Decades," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 34(1), pages 43-58, June.
    10. Don Clark & Marchese Serafino & Zarrilli Simonetta, 2000. "Do Dirty Industries Conduct Offshore Assembly In Developing Countries?," International Economic Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(3), pages 75-86.
    11. M. Hashem Pesaran, 2007. "A simple panel unit root test in the presence of cross-section dependence," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 22(2), pages 265-312.
    12. Gene M. Grossman & Alan B. Krueger, 1991. "Environmental Impacts of a North American Free Trade Agreement," NBER Working Papers 3914, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    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. Spelta, Alessandro & Pecora, Nicolò & Chen, Hung-Ju, 2025. "Foreign direct investments and CO2 emissions in Asia: A data-driven optimal transport perspective," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    2. Marc Audi & Amjad Ali & Marc Poulin, 2026. "Modelling Urban Expansion, Energy Consumption, and Environmental Sustainability: The Moderating Role of Environmental Taxes in Developing Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-24, May.

    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. Okelele, Daniel Ochudi & Lokina, Razack & Ruhinduka, Remidius Denis, . "Effect of Trade Openness on Ecological Footprint in Sub-Saharan Africa," African Journal of Economic Review, African Journal of Economic Review, vol. 10(01).
    2. Özge Barış-Tüzemen & Samet Tüzemen, 2022. "The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment and Biomass Energy Consumption on Pollution in BRICS Countries: A Panel Data Analysis," Global Journal of Emerging Market Economies, Emerging Markets Forum, vol. 14(1), pages 76-92, January.
    3. Zhang, Chuanguo & Zhou, Xiangxue, 2016. "Does foreign direct investment lead to lower CO2 emissions? Evidence from a regional analysis in China," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 943-951.
    4. Vo, Duc, 2019. "The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Environment Degradation: Evidence from Emerging Markets in Asia," MPRA Paper 103292, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Anh Hoang To & Dao Thi-Thieu Ha & Ha Minh Nguyen & Duc Hong Vo, 2019. "The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Environment Degradation: Evidence from Emerging Markets in Asia," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-24, May.
    6. Patrícia Hipólito Leal & António Cardoso Marques & Muhammad Shahbaz, 2021. "The role of globalisation, de jure and de facto, on environmental performance: evidence from developing and developed countries," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(5), pages 7412-7431, May.
    7. Shahbaz, Muhammad & Nasreen, Samia & Ahmed, Khalid & Hammoudeh, Shawkat, 2017. "Trade openness–carbon emissions nexus: The importance of turning points of trade openness for country panels," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 221-232.
    8. Opoku, Eric Evans Osei & Boachie, Micheal Kofi, 2020. "The environmental impact of industrialization and foreign direct investment," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    9. Armenia Androniceanu & Irina Georgescu, 2023. "The Impact of CO 2 Emissions and Energy Consumption on Economic Growth: A Panel Data Analysis," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-17, January.
    10. Pao, Hsiao-Tien & Tsai, Chung-Ming, 2011. "Multivariate Granger causality between CO2 emissions, energy consumption, FDI (foreign direct investment) and GDP (gross domestic product): Evidence from a panel of BRIC (Brazil, Russian Federation, India, and China) countries," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 685-693.
    11. Sapkota, Pratikshya & Bastola, Umesh, 2017. "Foreign direct investment, income, and environmental pollution in developing countries: Panel data analysis of Latin America," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 206-212.
    12. Muhammad Khan & Arslan Tariq Rana & Wafa Ghardallou, 2023. "FDI and CO2 emissions in developing countries: the role of human capital," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 117(1), pages 1125-1155, May.
    13. Ahmed, Khalid, 2017. "Revisiting the role of financial development for energy-growth-trade nexus in BRICS economies," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 487-495.
    14. Chinazaekpere Nwani & Andrew Adewale Alola & Chimobi Philip Omoke & Bosede Ngozi Adeleye & Festus Victor Bekun, 2022. "Responding to the environmental effects of remittances and trade liberalization in net-importing economies: the role of renewable energy in Sub-Saharan Africa," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 55(4), pages 2631-2661, November.
    15. Caravaggio, Nicola, 2020. "A global empirical re-assessment of the Environmental Kuznets curve for deforestation," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    16. Muhammad Shahbaz & Syed Jawad Hussain Shahzad & Mantu Kumar Mahalik & Perry Sadorsky, 2018. "How strong is the causal relationship between globalization and energy consumption in developed economies? A country-specific time-series and panel analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(13), pages 1479-1494, March.
    17. Wen Jun & Muhammad Zakaria & Syed Jawad Hussain Shahzad & Hamid Mahmood, 2018. "Effect of FDI on Pollution in China: New Insights Based on Wavelet Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-20, October.
    18. C. Seri & A. de Juan Fernández, 2023. "CO2 emissions and income growth in Latin America: long-term patterns and determinants," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(5), pages 4491-4524, May.
    19. Mohamed Abdouli & Sami Hammami, 2020. "Economic Growth, Environment, FDI Inflows, and Financial Development in Middle East Countries: Fresh Evidence from Simultaneous Equation Models," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 11(2), pages 479-511, June.
    20. Muhammad Bilal Khan & Hummera Saleem & Malik Shahzad Shabbir & Xie Huobao, 2022. "The effects of globalization, energy consumption and economic growth on carbon dioxide emissions in South Asian countries," Energy & Environment, , vol. 33(1), pages 107-134, February.

    More about this item

    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:plo:pone00:0314232. 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: plosone (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/ .

    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.