Determinants Of Foreign Direct Investment In Services

References pp. 20-23.

The report reviews lessons from the International Finance Corporation's (IFC) investment, and advisory experience in the developing world, which show the interactions between policy frameworks, and the volume and structure of foreign direct investments (FDI). Case studies show how the Corporation promotes successful project structures, and regulatory changes, as it tries to attain the strongest development impact for investments. In developing countries, FDI has flowed mainly into manufacturing, and processing industries. In the past, investment attractiveness had been closely linked to possession of natural resources, or a large domestic market, while production and trade globalization, competitiveness as a location for investment, and exporting, have become the main determinants of attractiveness. Sources of FDI in the past, came almost exclusively from industrial countries, though recently those sources have widened, emerging from developing countries in their own right, and for their own regions. IFC, as an international initiative to promote FDI in developing countries, is liable to promote bilateral trade agreements, bilateral and multilateral financial institutions, and investment promotion programs; its advisory role may vary from diagnostic studies overviewing constraints to FDI, to investment policy studies giving specific solutions on either changes, or strategies. The study further looks at how policy environment is set, and at finding investor opportunities, through project financing, largely structured as joint ventures. The inherent, fragile nature of joint ventures, restricts foreign ownership, thus limiting project structures; however, careful project design has lead to successful operations, by ensuring management, and financial arrangements. Still, to maximize benefits, an unfinished agenda of policy reform remains, and, as more countries open to FDI, this integration will lead to an overall increase in FDI flows.

Using a dataset which breaks down FDI flows into primary, secondary and tertiary sector investments and a GMM dynamic approach to address concerns about endogeneity, the paper analyzes various macroeconomic, developmental, and institutional/qualitative determinants of FDI in a sample of emerging market and developed economies. While FDI flows into the primary sector show little dependence on any of these variables, secondary and tertiary sector investments are affected in different ways by countries’ income levels and exchange rate valuation, as well as development indicators such as financial depth and school enrollment, and institutional factors such as judicial independence and labor market flexibility. Finally, we find that the effect of these factors often differs between advanced and emerging economies.

During the 1990s, the governments of South Asian countries acted as ‘facilitators’ to attract FDI. As a result, the inflow of FDI increased. However, to become an attractive FDI destination as China, Singapore, or Brazil, South Asia has to improve the local conditions of doing business. This book, based on research that blends theory, empirical evidence, and policy, asks and attempts to answer a few core questions relevant to FDI policy in South Asian countries: Which major reforms have succeeded? What are the factors that influence FDI inflows? What has been the impact of FDI on macroeconomic performance? Which policy priorities/reforms needed to boost FDI are pending? These questions and answers should interest policy makers, academics, and all those interested in FDI in the South Asian region and in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Inhaltsangabe:Abstract: This dissertation examines the critical importance of foreign direct investment in the growth of Ireland. It explains the reasons for Ireland s success and identifies the key steps in the history. The analysis is carried out in terms of the role of the Irish government policy in promoting foreign direct investment. Without the influence of foreign direct investment inflows, the economy would not have grown to the extent as it has. This paper will also show how important foreign direct investment is for the Irish economy in the future. The paper describes several theories about foreign direct investment. It addresses the advantages and disadvantages. More in depth this paper investigates the determinants of financial services sector investments abroad. It will also be shown how the Industrial Development Authority as an agency and the International Financial Services Centre contributed to Ireland s success. The example Hypo Real Estate Bank International illustrates how an investment in Ireland succeeded. This paper should attract readers with an interest in the Irish history and economy, in the role of foreign direct investment for a country s economy, or in financial services sector investments abroad. Introduction: O Connor and Forde (2003) refer to George Bernard Shaw, who quipped in the 1930s, that he hoped to be in Ireland on the day the world ended, because the Irish were always 50 years behind the times. Over 70 years later, the same can not be said. With an economy growing at a rate consistently above the EU average, Ireland is one of the most favoured locations for foreign direct investment in Europe by multinational corporations. Ireland has been transformed over the recent years. It has witnessed an economic miracle. There has been significant discussion in the business, academic, and popular press about the Celtic Tiger . Since 1987, there has been a sustained and well-balanced economic boom. This remarkable performance has been in complete contrast to the former development since the foundation of the state in 1922. The boom has changed the country. Ireland has become one of the leading European countries in economic development. One major reason for the success was the change in legislation and thus, a huge increase of foreign direct investment in Ireland followed by economic growth and wealth. After the introduction, chapter two starts with a description of the recent economic development in Ireland. [...]

The first section of this report identifies and discusses the range of policies that governments can implement to directly or indirectly influence inward foreign direct investment (FDI), as well as the behaviour of multinational companies in the host market. The following section sets out public policy criteria against which to evaluate the consequences of Canadian government policies toward inward FDI. The next section reviews the determinants of inward FDI, drawing upon the existing economic and international business literature. The subsequent two sections contain a broad overview of inward FDI patterns to Canada over the post-war period, with preliminary inferences about the influence of public policies on inward FDI flows, and discuss significant policy initiatives directed at influencing either the quantity of quality of inward FDI. These include the Foreign Investment Review Act, the Investment Canada Act, and the North American Free Trade Agreement. This is followed by a section that identifies Canadian government policies directed at restricting inward FDI at the sectoral level (financial services, oil and gas, communications). Welfare economics arguments for and against sectoral foreign ownership restrictions are considered. Original economic models of FDI for Canada are then discussed and case studies are presented of the consequences of foreign ownership and the impacts of foreign ownership policies on the three sectors mentioned above. The final section concludes the report with a summary and a set of policy recommendations.