Foreign direct investments from developing economies in the United States: Magnitude, characteristics, motives and location choice of manufacturing plants

In an effort to integrate globally most of the developing world has embarked on the path of globalization and liberalization, which has led to rapid growth of inward and outward Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from developing countries. In recent years the trend of outward FDI from developing countries has increasingly shifted to industrially developed countries instead of to the neighboring developing countries. This dissertation focus on this development and study the magnitude, characteristics, motives and determinants of location of manufacturing plants from developing countries. A comparison of FDI from developing countries and developed countries into the USA is also made.; The main question of the study is what characteristics enable developing country multinationals to survive the competition from industrially developed country multinationals and from host country firms? What are the motivations for such firms to invest abroad? What are the determinants of FDI from developing countries into the industrially developed countries? Are multinational enterprises from developing countries different from industrially developed country firms? And if so, how different?; This study uses data from primary and secondary sources to examine the evolution of outward foreign direct investment from developing countries and motives and types of outward FDI from the developing countries. The study verified the role of ownership, location, internalization and strategic advantages as set out in the Eclectic Paradigm. The FDI in the USA from developing countries is evaluated in the context of the present theoretical propositions.; The study is based on the macro and micro level comparative analysis of similarities and differences between investments from developed and developing countries and more specifically from Asia. The countries included in the study are the newly industrialized countries and developing countries from Asia: China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand.; Findings of the study suggest that the differences in magnitude, growth, characteristics, motives and location determinants depend on the country of origin and its structural and economic factors. The study supports current theories of FDI with some modifications, as FDI of a South-North nature is typically different from FDI of the North-North or even the South-South nature.