Export Versus FDI with Heterogeneous Firms

摘要: Multinational sales have grown at high rates over the last two decades, outpacing remarkable expansion of trade in manufactures. Consequently, literature has sought to incorporate mode foreign market access into “new” theory. This recognizes that Ž rms can serve buyers through a variety channels: they export their products customers, them subsidiaries, or license produce products. Our work focuses on rm’s choice between exports and “horizontal” direct investment (FDI). Horizontal FDI refers an production facility is designed customers market. Firms invest abroad when gains from avoiding costs outweigh maintaining capacity multiple markets. known as proximity-concentration tradeoff. We introduce heterogeneous simple multicountry, multisector model, which face trade-off. Every rm decides whether market, do so local subsidiary sales. These modes different relative costs: exporting involves lower xed while variable costs. model highlights important role within-sector productivity differences explaining structure international investment. First, only most productive engage activities. result mirrors other ndings heterogeneity trade; particular, results reported Melitz (2003). Second, those markets, FDI. Third, are larger sectors with more heterogeneity. Using U.S. afŽ liate data cover 52 manufacturing 38 countries, we show cross-sectoral predict composition manner suggested by our model. construct several measures heterogeneity, using sources, robust across all these measures. In addition, conŽ predictions proximityconcentration That is, tend substitute for transport * Helpman: Department Economics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, Tel Aviv CIAR (e-mail: ehelpman@harvard.edu); Melitz: National Bureau Economic Research, Centre Policy Research mmelitz@ harvard.edu); Yeaple: University Pennsylvania, 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, snyeapl2@ssc.upenn.edu). The statistical analysis rmlevel Corporations this study was conducted International Investment Division, Analysis, under arrangement maintained legal dentiality requirements. Views expressed authors not necessarily re ect Analysis. Elhanan Helpman thanks NSF nancial support. also thank Daron Acemoglu, Roberto Rigobon, Yona Rubinstein, Dani Tsiddon comments earlier draft, Man-Keung Tang excellent research assistance. 1 See Wilfred J. Ethier (1986), Ignatius Horstmann James R. Markusen (1987), (1996) models licensing alternative. therefore exclude “vertical” motives involve fragmentation countries. (1984, 1985), (2002, Ch. 9), Gordon H. Hanson et al. (2002) treatments form 3 See, example, (1992), S. Lael Brainard (1993), Anthony Venables (2000). 4 Andrew B. Bernard (2003) alternative theoretical Yeaple (2003a) based worker-skill Tybout surveys recent micro-level evidence motivated models. 5 loosely connected documented empirical pattern foreign-owned liates than domestically owned producers. Mark E. Doms Bradford Jensen (1998) United States Sourafel Girma Kingdom.