Do domestic firms benefit from the presence of MNEs? The case of the Italian manufacturing sector

Abstract

According to the main economic literature, foreign direct investment (FDI) from Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) can generate positive externalities to host countries, increasing the domestic firms productivity. Recently, the attention of researchers has moved from the analysis of ''horizontal'' spillovers i.e. those benefits to local enterprises at an intraindustrial level - towards the investigation of ''vertical'' spillovers phenomenon i.e. the diffusion of positive effects on domestic economies at an inter-industry level. In this paper we investigate the presence of both these two kinds of spillovers using a firm-level panel data of domestic and foreign firms in the Italian manufacturing sector. The results show the lack of ''horizontal'' spillovers and, at the same time, the presence of ''vertical'' ones.FDI; MNEs; Spillovers; Italian manufacturing sector