Foreign direct investment under weak rule of law : theory and evidence from China

This paper develops a self-enforcing contract model to show that better economic fundamentals can help when there is weak rule of law -- but with order -- to attract foreign direct investment, whereas lowering taxes does not necessarily help. Using a cross-region Chinese dataset, the analysis finds evidence consistent with the theoretical analysis. Regional variations in tax rates and the perceived quality of formal contracting institutions are not correlated with regional inflows of foreign direct investment, but leadership characteristics are. Most conventional economic factors have the predicted effects on foreign direct investment. The finding that foreign direct investment is lower in locations where domestic private firms have better access to finance and where the air quality is poor is new to the literature.Debt Markets,Emerging Markets,Investment and Investment Climate,Bankruptcy and Resolution of Financial Distress,Access to Finance

State-Owned Enterprises Going Public: The Case of China

Public listing is a key reform measure for large state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in China. We find evidence that public listing lowers state ownership significantly, lessens firms' reliance on debt finance, and allows firms to increase capital expenditure, at least temporarily. We also find that ownership structure affects post-listing performance. However, we find no statistical evidence of a positive effect of public listing on firms' profitability. We suggest alternative interpretations of the last finding

Foreign Direct Investment Under Weak Rule of Law: Theory and Evidence from China

We have developed a self-enforcing contract model to show that better economic fundamentals can help an area or a region under a weak rule of law – but with order – to attract foreign direct investments (FDIs), whereas lowering taxes does not necessarily help. Using a cross-region Chinese dataset, we find evidence consistent with our theoretical analysis. Regional variations in tax rates and the perceived quality of formal contracting institutions are not correlated with regional FDI inflows, but leadership characteristics are. Most conventional economic factors have the predicted effects on FDIs. The finding that FDI is lower in locations where domestic private firms have better access to finance and where the air quality is poor is also new to the literature

State-owned enterprises going public "The case of China"

Public listing is a key reform measure for large state-owned enterprises (SOEs) in China. We find evidence that public listing lowers state ownership significantly, lessens firms' reliance on debt finance, and allows firms to increase capital expenditure, at least temporarily. We also find that ownership structure affects post-listing performance. However, we find no statistical evidence of a positive effect of public listing on firms' profitability. We suggest alternative interpretations of the last finding. Copyright (c) The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 2004.