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Literature on the Link between Immigration Policy and FDI
FDI is defined as international capital flows that entail a minimum 10% ownership stake of a
business unit in a country other than the source of the funds and with the intention of
establishing a new subsidiary/branch, acquiring a controlling share of an existing firm, or
participating in a joint venture, among others (Moosa, 2002). Such an investment extends a
firm’s corporate network over national and political boundaries, allowing it to exercise
ownership over resources transferred abroad, including capital, equipment, engineering
expertise, and managerial and marketing skills (Liu, 1997).
The literature on immigration policy includes studies of the effects of immigration of capital
markets and economic returns. Borjas (1999, p. 67) argues that “Entrepreneurs thinking about
starting up new firms will find it more profitable to open them in immigrant areas.” This
suggests that immigration increases the return to capital, and capital will naturally flow to areas
where the returns are highest, including areas with higher immigrant populations. Gaston and
Nelson (2002) have reported that the impact of FDI on the labor market can be explained by the
effects of immigration. Kim (2006) argues that labor and FDI move in the same direction, and
thus that movements of labor will affect FDI flows.
Immigrant communities have been investigated in relation to investment in a region by
foreign firms. Foad (2012) argues that immigrant networks lower risk for foreign investment
thanks to their increased information flows within the market. He suggests that growth in an
immigrant community leads to new FDI from the native countries of the immigrants. As more
immigrants arrive, firms from the sending country will invest more in the host country,
following the immigrants through connections made. Gould (1994) also argues that immigrants’
links to their home country induce firms from their birth-country to invest. Javorcik et al. (2011)
suggest that FDI in the U.S. is positively associated with the presence of migrants from the
sending country because immigrants create a strong social network that connects them to their
country of origin. These findings suggest that host countries can benefit economically from the
ethnic diversity created by immigration.
Murat and Pistoresi (2006) argue that networks of Italian emigrants abroad significantly
promote inward and outward bilateral FDI. However, they also find that the overall influence of
immigrants is, at best, marginal. Baker and Benjamin (1997) find no significant relationship
between Asia-Pacific immigrants and FDI inflows in Canada, but Gao (2000) indicates that
Chinese immigrants have a positive association on inbound FDI in the U.S. Other scholars
identify that different types of immigrants have different effects on inward capital flows. For
instance, Ivlevs (2006) examines the relationship between international high- and low-skilled
labor on capital flows. He finds that an inflow of high-skilled labor always leads to higher
accompanying FDI inflows in the host countries. Baldwin and Venables (1994) also find that
changes in the stock of high-skilled workers affects returns on FDI because current and
expected wage differentials influence emigration decisions among high-skilled workers.
Economics: The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal 14 (2020–15)
www.economics-ejournal.org
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