Björn Jindra

European Integration and Outward FDI from Central and Eastern Europe – Is There Any Evidence of Knowledge‐Seeking?

The European Union (EU) Member States in central and eastern Europe (CEE) witnessed a surge in outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) between 2000 and the start of the global financial crisis. This article investigates whether the European integration process altered the relative importance of host country location factors. In particular, we investigate to what extent knowledge-seeking is a relevant investment motive, which has been documented as a key determinant for OFDI from other emerging economies. We apply a discrete choice approach to model foreign location choice of firms from CEE countries (CEECs) within the EU 27 (1996–2010). We find that the EU integration process is related with increasing importance of market access and less emphasis on labour cost advantages. We find heterogeneity in the valuation of foreign knowledge-related assets. The location probability within the EU15 is positively associated with knowledge-seeking. It also plays a role for technology-intensive industries and larger firms.

The Importance of Localized Related Variety for International Diversification of Corporate Technology

Dettmann E., Dominguez Lacasa I., Günther J. and Jindra B. The importance of localized related variety for international diversification of corporate technology, Regional Studies. Internationalization of research and development has increased substantially in recent years. This paper analyses the determinants of spatial distribution of foreign technological activities across 96 regions in Germany. It identifies foreign technological activities by applying the cross-border ownership concept to patent applications. The main proposition is that regions with higher related variety of technological activities between sectors attract more foreign technological activities. The estimations show that this is the case in regions characterized by a high overall technological strength. This suggests that related variety facilitates technological diversifications of foreign corporations in regions at the top of the geographic hierarchy.