Assessing the role of inward foreign direct investment in Chinese economic development, 1990-2007 : towards a synthesis of alternative views

Document Type

Journal article

Source Publication

Structural Change and Economic Dynamics

Publication Date

6-2016

Volume

37

First Page

107

Last Page

120

Publisher

Elsevier BV

Keywords

China, FDI, Economic development

Abstract

In the context of globalization, China has been widely regarded as the most successful country in the world in utilizing inward foreign direct investment (FDI) for economic development. The mainstream of the literature has produced a wide range of studies that are largely within the theoretical framework of neoclassical economics, and they tend to conclude that FDI has contributed significantly to Chinese economic development—through capital formation, export expansion, technology transfer, and the transformation of the economic structures and institutions. The objective of this paper is to assess the role of FDI in Chinese economic development with reference to the broader theoretical literature on FDI and late development, which encompasses structuralism and radical political economy along with neoclassical economics. From the perspectives of the broader literature, the analyses of the paper find that FDI in China has indeed promoted economic development in one respect (improving allocative efficiency), but has also had unfavourable effect in another respect (worsening productive efficiency), resulting in an overall impact that tends to be on the negative side. The mainstream story of China is thus judged to be partial, and the lessons to be drawn from the experience are arguably far more complex than have been hitherto perceived.

DOI

10.1016/j.strueco.2016.01.004

Print ISSN

0954349X

E-ISSN

18736017

Publisher Statement

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.

Full-text Version

Publisher’s Version

Language

English

Recommended Citation

Lo, D., Hong, F., & Li, G. (2016). Assessing the role of inward foreign direct investment in Chinese economic development, 1990-2007: Towards a synthesis of alternative views. Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, 37, 107-120. doi: 10.1016/j.strueco.2016.01.004

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