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Foreign Ownership and Firm Performance in German Services: First Evidence based on Official Statistics

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  • John P. Weche Geluebcke

    (Institute of Economics, Leuphana University Lueneburg, Germany)

Abstract

This study provides first comprehensive analyses of foreign-controlled enterprises in the German service sector based on new micro data from official statistics. Various performance measures were examined by comparing unconditional and conditional means and quantile regression techniques were applied. Results reveal persistently superior performance for foreign-controlled affiliates when compared to German-owned affiliates. In contrast, the relationship for profitability is exactly the opposite. Labor productivity becomes insignificant when the comparison group consists of domestically-owned affiliates with a high degree of internationalization. A breakdown by country of origin shows that European affiliates pay lower wages and export less compared to other foreign affiliates and that there is no productivity advantage in favor of US firms like in manufacturing.

Suggested Citation

  • John P. Weche Geluebcke, 2011. "Foreign Ownership and Firm Performance in German Services: First Evidence based on Official Statistics," Working Paper Series in Economics 213, University of Lüneburg, Institute of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:lue:wpaper:213
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    Cited by:

    1. Joachim Wagner & John Philipp Weche Gelübcke, 2012. "Foreign Ownership and Firm Survival: First Evidence for Enterprises in Germany," International Economics, CEPII research center, issue 132, pages 117-139.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    foreign ownership; firm performance; inward FDI; service sector; multinational enterprise;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration
    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements
    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business

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