Local determinants of the spatial distribution of exporters in Poland: the role of FDI

In the light of the hereto insufficient empirical evidence on the determinants of location of exporters and given the access to a unique GIS-based database for counties in Poland (LAU 1) on the distances to diverse points of interest (POIs) and infrastructure endowment, and data on regional heterogeneity, we investigate the deep determinants of exporters’ location in Poland. Our analysis is mostly driven by the concepts of NEG theory and the firms’ heterogeneity concept. With the use of econometric modelling, in the first step, we identify the determinants of regional location of exporting firms. In the second step, we try to identify the differences in the locational decisions of firms distinguished by ownership form, namely domestic and foreign-owned exporters. Our findings indicate the more predictable behaviour of foreign-owned exporters, for which the quality of transport endowment and inputs plays a more significant role in the decision in comparison to indigenous exporters, affected to a larger extent by deep-rooted factors and path-dependency. The locational preferences of FOEs are more influenced by the proximity to the airport and the motorways as well as subject to agglomeration externalities. The results point furthermore to the significance of accessibility to markets as evidenced by the role of infrastructure endowment and the role of the greater regional human capital endowment.