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The Dynamics of Offshoring and Institutions

Author

Listed:
  • Heyman, Fredrik

    (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN))

  • Gustavsson Tingvall, Patrik

    (Ratio Institute)

Abstract

Previous research has recognized that weak institutions can hamper investments and alter patterns of trade. However, little is known about the impact of institutional quality on offshoring. This is surprising, given that offshoring has become an important part of many firms’ internationalization strategy. This study uses detailed Swedish firm-level data on production and trade in combination with a large set of institutional measures of the target economies to study the relationship between institutional quality and offshoring. The results suggest that weak institutions are negatively related to offshoring in general and to offshoring of R&D-intensive goods in particular. Furthermore, firms that are able to establish long-term contracts do so by starting small and successively deepening their engagements. These results are robust to a large number of econometric specifications and various measures of institutional quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Heyman, Fredrik & Gustavsson Tingvall, Patrik, 2012. "The Dynamics of Offshoring and Institutions," Working Paper Series 919, Research Institute of Industrial Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:0919
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    Cited by:

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    2. Tobias Brändle & Andreas Koch, 2015. "Offshoreability and wages. Evidence from German task data," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 42(2), pages 189-216, June.
    3. Sousa, Carlos M.P. & He, Xinming & Lengler, Jorge & Tang, Linhan, 2021. "Foreign market re-entry: A review and future research directions," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(2).
    4. Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Peprah, Augustine Awuah & Amartey, Abednego Okoe & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2020. "Institutional voids and firms' resource commitment in emerging markets: A review and future research agenda," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Offshoring; Institutional quality; Firm-level data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business
    • P48 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Other Economic Systems - - - Legal Institutions; Property Rights; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Regional Studies

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