Jeremy Clegg

Language and Social Knowledge in Foreign-Knowledge Transfer to China

This paper establishes that transfer of knowledge across national borders within multinational enterprises depends both on a common language necessary for communication and on the shared social knowledge necessary to understand and predict the behavior of those engaged in the knowledge-transfer process. In a set of four case studies, it was found that knowledge transfer is more effective when technical and social knowledge are transferred together. Besides, ownership structure affects the understanding and transfer of social knowledge, while rich person-to-person contact in multinational teams provides an effective means of transferring social knowledge.

FDI, Regional Differences and Economic Growth: Panel Data Evidence from China

Development economists have long argued that countries pursuing externally oriented development strategies are more likely to achieve higher rates of economic growth than those that are internally focused. A number of studies have examined the relationship between inward FDI and economic growth in the developing host countries.1 A generally accepted conclusion is that FDI has played a significant role in promoting economic growth in host countries because FDI represents ‘the transmission to the host country of a package of capital, managerial skills, and technical skills’ (Johnson, 1972, p. 2). An interesting finding of previous studies is that the economic and technological conditions of a recipient economy influence the extent to which FDI contributes to growth.

Increasing the Size of the ‘Country’: Regional Economic Integration and Foreign Direct Investment in a Globalized World Economy

Two contradictory trends characterized the world economy during the approach to the twenty-first century. First, the globalization of the economy, together with the successful conclusion of the Uruguay Round and the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO), brought about a steady decline in barriers to international business transactions. Second, however, as countries have lost their conventional powers to protect themselves from the outside world, they have grouped together, often on a pan-continental basis, into regional trading blocs. Regional economic integration, in the form of institutions such as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the European Union (EU) or the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC), represents the main way that remains accessible to countries in their attempt to maintain and promote their levels and shares of world investment, employment, income and growth.

The Determinants of New FDI Capital Flows into the EC: A Statistical Comparison of the USA and Japan

This article reviews the link between European integration and foreign direct investment (FDI) into the European Community (EC). A model is constructed using comparable US and Japanese data on new FDI flows for 1984‐89. The data are clustered and pooled to enable intra‐EC differences in the model to be investigated. It is found that new FDI has been linked to conventional host characteristics variables, whose effects vary considerably between groups of member countries. Differences between the equations for the USA and Japan are attributed to the contrasting degrees of establishment of US and Japanese affiliates. For Japanese firms, as comparative outsiders (compared with US firms), the impact of the announcement of the single market programme (SMP) has been marked.

The Art of Knowledge Transfer: Secondary and Reverse Transfer in China’s Telecommunications Manufacturing Industry

This paper extends the theory on knowledge transfer and learning within multinational firms. It provides a theory-building study grounded in the context of the entry and operations of foreign multinational enterprises in the Chinese manufacturing industry.

Multinational enterprises in less developed countries

List of Tables - List of Figures - Preface and Acknowledgements - List of Contributors - PART 1: INTRODUCTION - Introduction and Statement of the Issues P.J.Buckley & J.Clegg - PART 2: THEORY - Multinational Enterprises in Less Developed Countries: Cultural and Economic Interaction P.J.Buckley & M.Casson - On the Transferability of Management Systems: The Case of Japan K.Weiermair - PART 3: MARKET STRUCTURE AND WELFARE EFFECTS - Strategic Trade Policy and the Multinational Enterprise in Developing Countries E.M.Graham - Market Rivalry, Government Policies and Multinational Enterprise in Developing Countries H.Katrak - The Impact of Foreign Investment on Less Developed Countries: Cross-Section Analysis versus Industry Studies R.Jenkins - PART 4: TRADE AND INVESTMENT - Countertrade: Theory and Evidence M.Casson & F.Chukujama - Factors Influencing Foreign Direct Investment by Transnational Corporations in Host Developing Countries: A Preliminary Report D.J.Lecraw - PART 5: EMPIRICAL STUDIES OF FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT IN LESS DEVELOPED COUNTRIES - Foreign Multinationals and Industrial Developed in Africa J.Cantwell - Yugoslav Foreign Direct Investment in Less Developed Countries P.Artisien, M.Rojec & M.Svetlicic - The Evolution of Multinationals from a Small Economy: A Study of Swedish Firms in Asia R.Aggarwal & P.N.Ghauri - Multinational Activity in the Mediterranean Rim Textile and Clothing Industry J.Hamill - Service Sector Multinationals and Developing Countries P.Enderwick - PART 6: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION - Some Concluding Remarks J.Dunning - Bibliography - Index

Inward FDI and Host Country Productivity: Evidence from China’s Electronics Industry

There has been a great deal of research examining whether foreign affiliates exhibit higher levels of productivity than local firms (see, for example, Aitken and Harrison, 1999). The premise for this is that the firm-specific assets of transnational corporations (TNCs) increase productivity in FDI-receiving firms (Egger and Pfaffermayr, 2001). If this is the case, one would expect FDI to enhance overall industry performance as measured, for example, by labour productivity through this direct effect on foreign affiliate performance. Empirical research supports the view that firms with foreign equity participation outperform firms that are entirely locally-owned (see, for example, Blomstrom and Sjoholm, 1999).

The Relationship Between Inward Foreign Direct Investment and the Performance of Domestically‐owned Chinese Manufacturing Industry

The improvement in performance of Chinese domestically owned industry in 1995 and 2001 is strongly linked to inward foreign direct investment. Rising foreign presence contributes towards the narrowing of the performance gap between foreign and locally owned enterprises in China. While investment by overseas Chinese firms benefits overall Chinese industry throughout, developed country FDI only generated a positive impact in 2001. Inward FDI by both investor groups benefits Chinese state owned enterprises, but not until 2001 for collectively owned Chinese firms. The results support the use of inward FDI as a development policy tool, in conjunction with economic liberalization.

The determinants of retail productivity: a critical review of the evidence

This paper discusses the literature on the established determinants of productivity in the retail sector. It also draws attention to some neglected strands of research which provide useful insights into strategies that could allow productivity enhancements in this area of the economy. To date, very few attempts have been made to integrate different specialisms in order to explain what drives productivity in retail. Here this paper rectifies this omission by putting together studies from economics, geography, knowledge management and employment studies. It is the authors’ view that quantitative studies of retail productivity should focus on total factor productivity in retailing as the result of competition/composition effects, planning regulations, information and communications technology, the multinational operation element and workforce skills. Further, the fact that retail firms possess advantages that are transferable between locations suggests that investment in strategies enhancing the transfer of explicit and tacit knowledge between and within businesses are crucial to achieve productivity gains.

Affiliate and non-affiliate intellectual property transactions in international business: an empirical overview of the UK and USA

This study investigates the pattern and growth of affiliate and non-affiliate international transactions in intellectual property (IP) for the USA and the UK. Using official data, it explores how far and in what ways the patterns of licensing and franchising activity accord with theoretical expectations. We find significant differences in the pattern of non-affiliate and affiliate transactions by country and region. While these can directly be linked to the extent of foreign direct investment (FDI) by the investing countries, it is also evident that the policy regime developments of the host countries, as well as the international (and regional) regime, have a bearing on the method by which intellectual property is exploited. Leading these are the degree of limitation in host market size, the degree of fragmentation of markets on a regional basis and, possibly, the excess transaction costs imposed on FDI by cultural and institutional barriers in certain countries.