Jorge Rosell-Martinez

Foreign direct investment and technical progress in Spanish manufacturing

This article analyses the effects of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on technical progress in Spanish manufacturing. Particularly, we study how FDIs contributions vary depending on the economic structure of the industry. The results show that most FDI goes to capital-intensive sectors, especially when those sectors are also Research and Development (R&D)-intensive. Our estimates of the Solow residual show that the positive effect of contemporaneous and lagged FDI on manufacturing productivity is only attributable to capital and R&D intensive industries in what seems to be related to a dynamic capabilities explanation or to complementarities with R&D expenditures.

Spillovers from Foreign Direct Investment in Spanish Manufacturing Firms

This paper examines the effect of participation by foreign capital and the spillovers from a foreign presence on the technical progress of Spanish manufacturing firms. The results show that foreign direct investment (FDI) creates positive spillover effects for local firms, and when the presence of foreign capital and the absorptive capacity of spillovers from FDI are large, more technical progress ensues. Also, local companies in capital�? and research and development (R&D)�?intensive industries experience larger positive FDI spillovers. For these reasons, government policies should aim to attract FDI, especially in the aforementioned industries.

Product differentiation strategy and vertical integration: an application to the DOC Rioja wine industry

This study evaluates the importance of product differentiation as a determinant of vertical integration in firms. The proposed model also controls for known determinants of integration, such as transaction costs and firm-level capabilities. By identifying transaction-, firm- and strategy-level determinants, we derive testable predictions about the vertical integration decision. To test these predictions we analyze the Rioja wine industry, using a representative sample of 187 firms. Our paper concludes that reaching judicious vertical integration decisions requires a thorough analysis of some very diverse aspects, especially those related to mitigating opportunism, dealing with unforeseen contingencies and product differentiation.