IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/iis/dispap/iiisdp186.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Does foreign direct investment affect wage inequality? An empirical investigation

Author

Listed:
  • Paolo Figini
  • Holger Görg

Abstract

We use a panel of more than 100 countries for the period 1980 to 2002 to analyse the relationship between inward foreign direct investment (FDI) and wage inequality. We particularly check whether this relationship is non-linear, in line with a theoretical discussion. We find that the effect of FDI differs according to the level of development: we depict two different patterns, one for OECD (developed) and one for non-OECD (developing) countries. Results suggest the presence of a non linear effect in developing countries; wage inequality increases with FDI inward stock but this effect diminishes with further increases in FDI. For developed countries, wage inequality decreases with FDI inward stock and there is no robust evidence to show that this effect is non-linear.

Suggested Citation

  • Paolo Figini & Holger Görg, 2007. "Does foreign direct investment affect wage inequality? An empirical investigation," The Institute for International Integration Studies Discussion Paper Series iiisdp186, IIIS.
    • Handle: RePEc:iis:dispap:iiisdp186
    Note: Length:
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.tcd.ie/triss/assets/PDFs/iiis/iiisdp186.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kugler, Maurice, 2006. "Spillovers from foreign direct investment: Within or between industries?," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 80(2), pages 444-477, August.
    2. Taylor, Karl & Driffield, Nigel, 2005. "Wage inequality and the role of multinationals: evidence from UK panel data," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 12(2), pages 223-249, April.
    3. J.Peter Neary, 2002. "Foreign Competition and Wage Inequality," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(4), pages 680-693, November.
    4. Daron Acemoglu, 2003. "Cross-Country Inequality Trends," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 113(485), pages 121-149, February.
    5. Aghion, Philippe & Howitt, Peter & Violante, Giovanni L, 2002. "General Purpose Technology and Wage Inequality," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 7(4), pages 315-345, December.
    6. Sourafel Girma & Holger Görg, 2016. "Evaluating the foreign ownership wage premium using a difference-in-differences matching approach," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES AND HOST COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT Volume 53: World Scientific Studies in International Economics, chapter 2, pages 17-32, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    7. Lindbeck, Assar & Snower, Dennis J, 1996. "Reorganization of Firms and Labor-Market Inequality," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 86(2), pages 315-321, May.
    8. Pol Antràs & Luis Garicano & Esteban Rossi-Hansberg, 2006. "Offshoring in a Knowledge Economy," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 121(1), pages 31-77.
    9. Robert E. Lipsey & Fredrik Sjoholm, 2001. "Foreign Direct Investment and Wages in Indonesian Manufacturing," NBER Working Papers 8299, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Borensztein, E. & De Gregorio, J. & Lee, J-W., 1998. "How does foreign direct investment affect economic growth?1," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 45(1), pages 115-135, June.
    11. Alfaro, Laura & Chanda, Areendam & Kalemli-Ozcan, Sebnem & Sayek, Selin, 2004. "FDI and economic growth: the role of local financial markets," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 89-112, October.
    12. Pan-Long Tsai, 1995. "Foreign direct investment and income inequality: Further evidence," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 469-483, March.
    13. Wen‐Jung Liang & Chao‐Cheng Mai, 2003. "Capital Flows, Vertical Multinationals, Wage Inequality, and Welfare," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(4), pages 599-608, November.
    14. James K. Galbraith & Hyunsub Kum, 2005. "Estimating The Inequality Of Household Incomes: A Statistical Approach To The Creation Of A Dense And Consistent Global Data Set," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 51(1), pages 115-143, March.
    15. Blundell, Richard & Bond, Stephen, 1998. "Initial conditions and moment restrictions in dynamic panel data models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 87(1), pages 115-143, August.
    16. Esquivel, Gerardo & Rodriguez-Lopez, Jose Antonio, 2003. "Technology, trade, and wage inequality in Mexico before and after NAFTA," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(2), pages 543-565, December.
    17. Bruce A. Blonigen & Miao Wang, 2004. "Inappropriate Pooling of Wealthy and Poor Countries in Empirical FDI Studies," NBER Working Papers 10378, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Basu, Parantap & Guariglia, Alessandra, 2007. "Foreign Direct Investment, inequality, and growth," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 824-839, December.
    19. Clark, Andrew E. & Oswald, Andrew J., 1996. "Satisfaction and comparison income," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(3), pages 359-381, September.
    20. Richard B. Freeman & Remco H. Oostendorp, 2002. "Wages Around the World: Pay across Occupations and Countries," International Economic Association Series, in: Richard B. Freeman (ed.), Inequality Around the World, chapter 2, pages 5-37, Palgrave Macmillan.
    21. Cecilia Garcia-Penalosa & Eve Caroli & Philippe Aghion, 1999. "Inequality and Economic Growth: The Perspective of the New Growth Theories," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 37(4), pages 1615-1660, December.
    22. Feenstra, Robert C. & Hanson, Gordon H., 1997. "Foreign direct investment and relative wages: Evidence from Mexico's maquiladoras," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 42(3-4), pages 371-393, May.
    23. Beyer, Harald & Rojas, Patricio & Vergara, Rodrigo, 1999. "Trade liberalization and wage inequality," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(1), pages 103-123, June.
    24. Sugata Marjit & Hamid Beladi & Avik Chakrabarti, 2004. "Trade and Wage Inequality in Developing Countries," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 42(2), pages 295-303, April.
    25. Munisamy Gopinath & Weiyan Chen, 2004. "Foreign direct investment and wages: a cross-country analysis," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 13(2), pages 231-231.
    26. Satya Das, 2005. "Gradual globalization and inequality between and within countries," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 38(3), pages 852-869, August.
    27. Beata Smarzynska Javorcik, 2004. "Does Foreign Direct Investment Increase the Productivity of Domestic Firms? In Search of Spillovers Through Backward Linkages," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(3), pages 605-627, June.
    28. Bruce A. Blonigen & Matthew J. Slaughter, 2019. "Foreign-Affiliate Activity and U.S. Skill Upgrading," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Foreign Direct Investment, chapter 10, pages 325-367, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    29. repec:dau:papers:123456789/10091 is not listed on IDEAS
    30. Yona Rubinstein & Daniel Tsiddon, 2004. "Coping with Technological Change: The Role of Ability in Making Inequality so Persistent," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 305-346, September.
    31. repec:hrv:faseco:4784031 is not listed on IDEAS
    32. Robert Feenstra & Gordon Hanson, 2001. "Global Production Sharing and Rising Inequality: A Survey of Trade and Wages," NBER Working Papers 8372, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    33. repec:bla:reviec:v:10:y:2002:i:4:p:680-93 is not listed on IDEAS
    34. Paul Segerstrom & Elias Dinopoulos, 1999. "A Schumpeterian Model of Protection and Relative Wages," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(3), pages 450-472, June.
    35. E. Santarelli & P. Figini, 2002. "Does Globalization Reduce Poverty? Some Empirical Evidence for the Developing Countries," Working Papers 459, Dipartimento Scienze Economiche, Universita' di Bologna.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Bruno Decreuse & Paul Maarek, 2015. "FDI and the Labor Share in Developing Countries : A Theory and Some Evidence," Annals of Economics and Statistics, GENES, issue 119-120, pages 289-319.
    2. Quoc Hoi Le & Quynh Anh Do & Hong Chuong Pham & Thanh Duong Nguyen, 2021. "The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Income Inequality in Vietnam," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-15, March.
    3. Holger Görg & David Greenaway, 2016. "Much Ado about Nothing? Do Domestic Firms Really Benefit from Foreign Direct Investment?," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES AND HOST COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT Volume 53: World Scientific Studies in International Economics, chapter 9, pages 163-189, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    4. Wu, Jyun-Yi & Hsu, Chih-Chiang, 2012. "Foreign direct investment and income inequality: Does the relationship vary with absorptive capacity?," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 29(6), pages 2183-2189.
    5. Prüfer, P. & Tondl, G., 2008. "The FDI-Growth Nexus in Latin America : The Role of Source Countries and Local Conditions," Other publications TiSEM 73b28850-1597-4bcb-a76c-1, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    6. Clark Don P. & Highfill Jannett & de Oliveira Campino Jonas & Rehman Scheherazade S., 2011. "FDI, Technology Spillovers, Growth, and Income Inequality: A Selective Survey," Global Economy Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 11(2), pages 1-44, July.
    7. Quynh Anh Do & Quoc Hoi Le & Thanh Duong Nguyen & Van Anh Vu & Lan Huong Tran & Cuc Thi Thu Nguyen, 2021. "Spatial Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Poverty Reduction in Vietnam," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-16, June.
    8. Philipp Harms & Pierre-Guillaume Méon, 2011. "An FDI is an FDI is an FDI? The growth effects of greenfield investment and mergers and acquisitions in developing countries," Working Papers 11.10, Swiss National Bank, Study Center Gerzensee.
    9. Abdul Rahim Ridzuan & Nor Asmat Ismail & Abdul Fatah Che Hamat, 2017. "Does Foreign Direct Investment Successfully Lead to Sustainable Development in Singapore?," Economies, MDPI, vol. 5(3), pages 1-20, August.
    10. Wang, Hao & Fidrmuc, Jan & Luo, Qi, 2021. "A spatial analysis of inward FDI and urban–rural wage inequality in China," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 45(3).
    11. Cagatay Bircan, 2013. "Foreign direct investment and wages: does the level of ownership matter?," Working Papers 157, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Office of the Chief Economist.
    12. Stefan Jestl & Sandra M. Leitner & Sebastian Leitner, 2022. "The relative impact of different forces of globalization on wage inequality: A fresh look at the EU experience," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 1003-1037, September.
    13. Sadullah Çelik & Ulkem Basdas, 2010. "How Does Globalization Affect Income Inequality? A Panel Data Analysis," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 16(4), pages 358-370, November.
    14. Dierk Herzer & Peter Nunnenkamp, 2013. "Inward and outward FDI and income inequality: evidence from Europe," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 149(2), pages 395-422, June.
    15. Segundo Camino-Mogro & Natalia Bermúdez-Barrezueta & Mary Armijos, 2023. "Is FDI a potential tool for boosting firm’s performance? Firm level evidence from Ecuador," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 341-391, April.
    16. Suanes, Macarena, 2016. "Foreign direct investment and income inequality in Latin America: a sectoral analysis," Revista CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), April.
    17. repec:kap:iaecre:v:16:y:2010:i:4:p:358-370 is not listed on IDEAS
    18. Basu, Parantap & Guariglia, Alessandra, 2007. "Foreign Direct Investment, inequality, and growth," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 29(4), pages 824-839, December.
    19. Thi Hong Hanh Pham, 2015. "Income Inequality and Foreign Aid," Working Papers hal-01158240, HAL.
    20. Shima’a Hanafy & Marcus Marktanner, 2019. "Sectoral FDI, absorptive capacity and economic growth – empirical evidence from Egyptian governorates," The Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(1), pages 57-81, January.
    21. Paolo Epifani & Gino Gancia, 2008. "The Skill Bias of World Trade," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 118(530), pages 927-960, July.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Foreign Direct Investment; Wage Inequality; Multinational Firms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

    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:iis:dispap:iiisdp186. 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: Maeve (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cetcdie.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.