IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/glodps/86.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Do Environmental Regulations Effect FDI decisions? The Pollution Haven Hypothesis Revisited

Author

Listed:
  • Yoon, Haeyeon
  • Heshmati, Almas

Abstract

In an attempt to verify the pollution haven hypothesis, this study investigates the impact of environmental regulations on foreign direct investment (FDI). We use Korean outward FDI data covering the manufacturing sector for 2009-15. The study not only considers the stringency but also the enforcement of environmental regulations when measuring the degree of the host country’s environmental regulations. Since the pollution haven’s effects indicate moving the polluting production stages from the home country to other (host) countries, we distinguish between investments in the ‘production’ part from that in the non-production part using location information about the host country. The main results of the estimation of a FDI model show that the stricter the regulations in host countries in Asia the lower the FDI both intensively and extensively to those countries. This supports the prevalence of the effects of pollution havens. However, before we separate the FDI into the production part, the effect of environmental regulations on FDI is hindered by the FDI in the non-production part. The results indicate that environmental regulations are determinants of FDI in the production part, while environmental regulations do not have a significant effect on FDI decisions when the entire FDI is considered.

Suggested Citation

  • Yoon, Haeyeon & Heshmati, Almas, 2017. "Do Environmental Regulations Effect FDI decisions? The Pollution Haven Hypothesis Revisited," GLO Discussion Paper Series 86, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:glodps:86
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/162778/1/GLO_DP_0086.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. List, John A. & Co, Catherine Y., 2000. "The Effects of Environmental Regulations on Foreign Direct Investment," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 40(1), pages 1-20, July.
    2. 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.
    3. Chung, Sunghoon, 2014. "Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment: Evidence from South Korea," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 222-236.
    4. Yeaple, Stephen Ross, 2009. "Firm heterogeneity and the structure of U.S. multinational activity," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(2), pages 206-215, July.
    5. Marc J. Melitz, 2003. "The Impact of Trade on Intra-Industry Reallocations and Aggregate Industry Productivity," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 71(6), pages 1695-1725, November.
    6. Eskeland, Gunnar S. & Harrison, Ann E., 2003. "Moving to greener pastures? Multinationals and the pollution haven hypothesis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 70(1), pages 1-23, February.
    7. 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.
    8. Cheng, Leonard K. & Kwan, Yum K., 2000. "What are the determinants of the location of foreign direct investment? The Chinese experience," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 379-400, August.
    9. Hea-Jung Hyun & Jung Hur, 2013. "Who goes where and how? Firm and country characteristics in the choice of FDI type and location," Asian-Pacific Economic Literature, The Crawford School, The Australian National University, vol. 27(2), pages 144-158, November.
    10. Levinson, Arik, 1996. "Environmental regulations and manufacturers' location choices: Evidence from the Census of Manufactures," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1-2), pages 5-29, October.
    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. Satoğlu, E. Beyza & Salmon, Jessica Rae, 2024. "Environmental policy stringency and foreign direct investment: A study considering the impact of country-income level," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 312(C).
    2. Qian Wang & Zhuoya Du & Boyu Wang & Yung‐ho Chiu & Tzu‐Han Chang, 2022. "Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment attractiveness: Evidence from China provinces," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 899-917, May.
    3. Nor Aznin Abu Bakar & Jimoh Olajide Raji & Rana Muhammad Adeel-Farooq, 2019. "Greenfield, Mergers & Acquisitions, Energy Consumption, and Environmental Performance in selected SAARC and ASEAN countries," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 9(2), pages 216-224.
    4. Joltreau, Eugénie & Sommerfeld, Katrin, 2016. "Why does emissions trading under the EU ETS not affect firms' competitiveness? Empirical findings from the literature," ZEW Discussion Papers 16-062, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    5. Jiangfeng Hu & Zhao Wang & Qinghua Huang & Xiaoqin Zhang, 2019. "Environmental Regulation Intensity, Foreign Direct Investment, and Green Technology Spillover—An Empirical Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-15, May.
    6. YuBiao Hao & XueCheng Zhang, 2023. "The impact of environmental regulation on urban green output efficiency: evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 25(6), pages 5717-5735, June.
    7. Qinghua Huang & Min Liu, 2022. "Trade openness and green total factor productivity: testing the role of environment regulation based on dynamic panel threshold model," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(7), pages 9304-9329, July.
    8. Xiaodi Yang & Di Wang, 2022. "Heterogeneous Environmental Regulation, Foreign Direct Investment, and Regional Carbon Dioxide Emissions: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-19, May.
    9. Lyubov Tsoy & Almas Heshmati, 2024. "Is FDI inflow bad for environmental sustainability?," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(11), pages 28843-28858, November.
    10. Weijiang Liu & Mingze Du, 2021. "Is Technological Progress Selective for Multiple Pollutant Emissions?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(17), pages 1-17, September.
    11. Muhammad Azam & Hina Khan & Zia Ur Rehman, 2024. "Analyzing the Threshold Effect in the Relationship Between Income and Environmental Degradation in the Middle East and North Africa Region," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 15(2), pages 6057-6078, June.
    12. Xuhui Ding & Yong Chen & Min Li & Narisu Liu, 2022. "Booster or Killer? Research on Undertaking Transferred Industries and Residents’ Well-Being Improvements," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-19, November.
    13. Elvis D. Achuo & Clovis Wendji Miamo & Clémence Zite Kouhomou, 2024. "Resource rents and environmental pollution in developing countries: Does the quality of institutions matter?," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 360-387, February.
    14. Ali Çelik, 2023. "Testing Linear and Nonlinear Relationships Between Foreign Direct Investment and Fossil Energy Consumption in Fragile Five Countries," EKOIST Journal of Econometrics and Statistics, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, vol. 0(38), pages 1-77, June.
    15. Jianquan Guo & He Cheng, 2024. "Acquirers’ carbon risk, environmental regulation, and cross-border mergers and acquisitions: evidence from China," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(6), pages 15861-15904, June.

    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. Shao, Yanmin & Shang, Yan, 2016. "Decisions of OFDI Engagement and Location for Heterogeneous Multinational firms: Evidence from Chinese firms," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 178-187.
    2. Sylwia Bialek & Alfons J. Weichenrieder, 2021. "Do Stringent Environmental Policies Deter FDI? M&A versus Greenfield," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 80(3), pages 603-636, November.
    3. Edward Manderson & Richard Kneller, 2012. "Environmental Regulations, Outward FDI and Heterogeneous Firms: Are Countries Used as Pollution Havens?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 51(3), pages 317-352, March.
    4. José C. Fariñas & Ana Martín-Marcos & Francisco J. Velázquez, 2021. "The Geographical Scope of Multinational Firms and Heterogeneity," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 32(4), pages 761-788, September.
    5. Fariñas, José C. & Martín-Marcos, Ana & Velázquez, Francisco J., 2019. "Estimating the Scope Elasticity of Multinational Firms: An Empirical Assessment," MPRA Paper 94990, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Cui, Jingbo & Moschini, GianCarlo, 2020. "Firm internal network, environmental regulation, and plant death," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    7. Yanyun Li & Faqin Lin & Wenxiao Wang, 2022. "Environmental regulation and inward foreign direct investment: Evidence from the eleventh Five‐Year Plan in China," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(3), pages 684-707, July.
    8. Okubo, Toshihiro & Watabe, Yuta, 2023. "Networked FDI and third-country intra-firm trade," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 591-606.
    9. Kerui Du & Qilin Huang & Presley K. Wesseh, 2025. "Domestic Pollution Havens: Linking Interregional Capital Flight and Water Pollution Regulation in China," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 88(1), pages 125-161, January.
    10. Andre Jungmittag, 2019. "Service trade restrictiveness and internationalisation of retail trade," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 293-333, April.
    11. Colin Kirkpatrick & Kenichi Shimamoto, 2008. "The effect of environmental regulation on the locational choice of Japanese foreign direct investment," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(11), pages 1399-1409.
    12. Yunyi Hu & Haitao Yin & Jon J. Moon, 2022. "Environmental regulation and foreign investment: Evidence from China," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 862-883, November.
    13. Antoine Gervais, 2018. "Multiregional Firms And Region Switching In The U.S. Manufacturing Sector," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 56(2), pages 955-982, April.
    14. Nielsen, Bo Bernhard & Asmussen, Christian Geisler & Weatherall, Cecilie Dohlmann, 2017. "The location choice of foreign direct investments: Empirical evidence and methodological challenges," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 62-82.
    15. Alguacil, Maite & Martí, Josep & Orts, Vicente, 2017. "Firm heterogeneity and the market scope of European multinational activity," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 645-659.
    16. Laura Alfaro & Maggie X. Chen, 2013. "Market Reallocation and Knowledge Spillover: The Gains from Multinational Production," Working Papers 2013-13, The George Washington University, Institute for International Economic Policy.
    17. Michael Moritz & Veronika Hecht & Patricia Noska & Johannes Schaffler, 2020. "Types of FDI and Determinants of Affiliate Size: the Classification Makes the Difference," Czech Journal of Economics and Finance (Finance a uver), Charles University Prague, Faculty of Social Sciences, vol. 70(4), pages 312-331, October.
    18. Shawn Arita & Kiyoyasu Tanaka, 2014. "Heterogeneous multinational firms and productivity gains from falling FDI barriers," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 150(1), pages 83-113, February.
    19. Tiago Loncan, 2021. "The Effects of Project Scale on FDI Location Choices: Evidence from Emerging Economies," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 61(2), pages 157-205, April.
    20. Kiyoyasu Tanaka, 2015. "Firm Heterogeneity and FDI in Distribution Services," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(8), pages 1295-1311, August.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Pollution haven hypothesis; environmental regulation; foreign direct investment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
    • K32 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Energy, Environmental, Health, and Safety Law
    • L51 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Economics of Regulation
    • Q56 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environment and Development; Environment and Trade; Sustainability; Environmental Accounts and Accounting; Environmental Equity; Population Growth

    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:zbw:glodps:86. 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: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/glabode.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.