IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/poleco/v75y2022ics0176268022000246.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Non-trade provisions in trade agreements and FDI

Author

Listed:
  • Di Ubaldo, Mattia
  • Gasiorek, Michael

Abstract

Preferential trade agreements (PTAs) increasingly feature a variety of provisions related to economic and social rights (ESR), environmental protection (EP), and civil and political rights (CPR). In this paper we estimate the effect of the degree of legalization of PTAs in these non-trade provisions on the flow of bilateral greenfield FDI. We explore this relation in a structural gravity setting and find that all three types of non-trade provisions affect the flow of FDI negatively. This effect is driven by investments directed to middle- and low-income countries, in particular for more directly economically relevant (ESR and EP) provisions. These latter are also found to have a larger negative impact on FDI between origin-destination country-pairs which differ the most in their commitment on non-trade issues in PTAs with third parties.

Suggested Citation

  • Di Ubaldo, Mattia & Gasiorek, Michael, 2022. "Non-trade provisions in trade agreements and FDI," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:poleco:v:75:y:2022:i:c:s0176268022000246
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2022.102208
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0176268022000246
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2022.102208?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Breinlich, Holger & Leromain, Elsa & Novy, Dennis & Sampson, Thomas, 2020. "Voting with their money: Brexit and outward investment by UK firms," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    2. Wisniewski, Tomasz P. & Pathan, Saima K., 2014. "Political environment and foreign direct investment: Evidence from OECD countries," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 13-23.
    3. Justin Paul & Gurmeet Singh, 2017. "The 45 years of foreign direct investment research: Approaches, advances and analytical areas," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(11), pages 2512-2527, November.
    4. Borchert, Ingo & Conconi, Paola & Di Ubaldo, Mattia & Herghelegiu, Cristina, 2021. "The Pursuit of Non-Trade Policy Objectives in EU Trade Policy," World Trade Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 20(5), pages 623-647, December.
    5. James R. Markusen, 2004. "Multinational Firms and the Theory of International Trade," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262633078, April.
    6. Agnès Bénassy‐Quéré & Maylis Coupet & Thierry Mayer, 2007. "Institutional Determinants of Foreign Direct Investment," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(5), pages 764-782, May.
    7. Fathi Ali & Norbert Fiess & Ronald MacDonald, 2010. "Do Institutions Matter for Foreign Direct Investment?," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 21(2), pages 201-219, April.
    8. Cai, Xiqian & Lu, Yi & Wu, Mingqin & Yu, Linhui, 2016. "Does environmental regulation drive away inbound foreign direct investment? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 73-85.
    9. Alberto Osnago & Nadia Rocha & Michele Ruta, 2019. "Deep trade agreements and vertical FDI: The devil is in the details," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 52(4), pages 1558-1599, November.
    10. Randy Becker & Vernon Henderson, 2000. "Effects of Air Quality Regulations on Polluting Industries," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 108(2), pages 379-421, April.
    11. Karolina Ekholm & Rikard Forslid & James R. Markusen, 2021. "Export-Platform Foreign Direct Investment," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: BROADENING TRADE THEORY Incorporating Market Realities into Traditional Models, chapter 6, pages 111-130, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    12. Egger, Peter & Winner, Hannes, 2005. "Evidence on corruption as an incentive for foreign direct investment," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 21(4), pages 932-952, December.
    13. John A. List & Daniel L. Millimet & Per G. Fredriksson & W. Warren McHone, 2003. "Effects of Environmental Regulations on Manufacturing Plant Births: Evidence from a Propensity Score Matching Estimator," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(4), pages 944-952, November.
    14. Beata Smarzynska Javorcik & Mariana Spatareanu, 2005. "Do Foreign Investors Care about Labor Market Regulations?," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 141(3), pages 375-403, October.
    15. Davies, Ronald B. & Vadlamannati, Krishna Chaitanya, 2013. "A race to the bottom in labor standards? An empirical investigation," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 1-14.
    16. Kolstad, Ivar & Villanger, Espen, 2008. "Determinants of foreign direct investment in services," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 518-533, June.
    17. Anderson, James E. & Larch, Mario & Yotov, Yoto V., 2019. "Trade and investment in the global economy: A multi-country dynamic analysis," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    18. Yu, Zhen & Xiao, Yao & Li, Jinpo, 2021. "How does geopolitical uncertainty affect Chinese overseas investment in the energy sector? Evidence from the South China Sea Dispute," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    19. Simone Moriconi & Giovanni Peri & Dario Pozzoli, 2020. "The role of institutions and immigrant networks in firms’ offshoring decisions," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 53(4), pages 1745-1792, November.
    20. Daniel Trefler, 2004. "The Long and Short of the Canada-U. S. Free Trade Agreement," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(4), pages 870-895, September.
    21. Henk L. M. Kox & Hugo Rojas‐Romagosa, 2020. "How trade and investment agreements affect bilateral foreign direct investment: Results from a structural gravity model," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(12), December.
    22. Natalia Ramondo & Andrés Rodríguez-Clare, 2013. "Trade, Multinational Production, and the Gains from Openness," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 121(2), pages 273-322.
    23. Judith M. Dean & Mary E. Lovely & Hua Wang, 2017. "Are foreign investors attracted to weak environmental regulations? Evaluating the evidence from China," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Mary E Lovely (ed.), International Economic Integration and Domestic Performance, chapter 9, pages 155-167, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    24. Rema Hanna, 2010. "US Environmental Regulation and FDI: Evidence from a Panel of US-Based Multinational Firms," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(3), pages 158-189, July.
    25. Ronald B. Davies, 2008. "Hunting High and Low for Vertical FDI," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(2), pages 250-267, May.
    26. Busse, Matthias & Hefeker, Carsten, 2007. "Political risk, institutions and foreign direct investment," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 397-415, June.
    27. Aleksynska, Mariya & Havrylchyk, Olena, 2013. "FDI from the south: The role of institutional distance and natural resources," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 38-53.
    28. Egger, Peter H. & Nigai, Sergey, 2015. "Structural gravity with dummies only: Constrained ANOVA-type estimation of gravity models," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(1), pages 86-99.
    29. Sánchez-Martín, Miguel Eduardo & de Arce, Rafael & Escribano, Gonzalo, 2014. "Do changes in the rules of the game affect FDI flows in Latin America? A look at the macroeconomic, institutional and regional integration determinants of FDI," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 279-299.
    30. Alessandro Ferrari & Matteo Fiorini & Joseph Francois, Bernard Hoekman, Lisa Maria Lechner, Miriam Manchin, Filippo Santi, 2021. "EU Trade Agreements and Non-Trade Policy Objectives," RSCAS Working Papers 2021/48, European University Institute.
    31. Neal D. Woods, 2006. "Interstate Competition and Environmental Regulation: A Test of the Race‐to‐the‐Bottom Thesis," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 87(1), pages 174-189, March.
    32. Chen, Maggie X., 2009. "Regional economic integration and geographic concentration of multinational firms," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(3), pages 355-375, April.
    33. Mattia Ubaldo & Steven McGuire & Vikrant Shirodkar, 2022. "Voluntary programs and emissions revisited: What is the effect of EU trade agreements with environmental provisions?," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 5(4), pages 467-489, December.
    34. Philipp Harms & Heinrich W. Ursprung, 2002. "Do Civil and Political Repression Really Boost Foreign Direct Investments?," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 40(4), pages 651-663, October.
    35. Miao Wang & M. C. Sunny Wong, 2009. "What Drives Economic Growth? The Case of Cross‐Border M&A and Greenfield FDI Activities," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(2), pages 316-330, April.
    36. Navina Lucke & Stefan Eichler, 2016. "Foreign direct investment: the role of institutional and cultural determinants," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(11), pages 935-956, March.
    37. Jagdish Bhagwati, 1995. "Trade Liberalisation and ‘Fair Trade’ Demands: Addressing the Environmental and Labour Standards Issues," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(6), pages 745-759, November.
    38. Abbott, Kenneth W. & Keohane, Robert O. & Moravcsik, Andrew & Slaughter, Anne-Marie & Snidal, Duncan, 2000. "The Concept of Legalization," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 54(3), pages 401-419, July.
    39. Egger, Peter & Nigai, Sergey, 2015. "Structural Gravity with Dummies Only," CEPR Discussion Papers 10427, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    40. Olney, William W., 2013. "A race to the bottom? Employment protection and foreign direct investment," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(2), pages 191-203.
    41. María Pía Olivero & Yoto V. Yotov, 2012. "Dynamic gravity: endogenous country size and asset accumulation," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 45(1), pages 64-92, February.
    42. Baier, Scott L. & Bergstrand, Jeffrey H., 2007. "Do free trade agreements actually increase members' international trade?," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 71(1), pages 72-95, March.
    43. Chung, Sunghoon, 2014. "Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment: Evidence from South Korea," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 222-236.
    44. Peter Egger & Mario Larch & Kevin E. Staub & Rainer Winkelmann, 2011. "The Trade Effects of Endogenous Preferential Trade Agreements," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 3(3), pages 113-143, August.
    45. Helpman, Elhanan, 1984. "A Simple Theory of International Trade with Multinational Corporations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 92(3), pages 451-471, June.
    46. Busse, Matthias, 2002. "Do Labor Standards Affect Comparative Advantage in Developing Countries?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(11), pages 1921-1932, November.
    47. Richard Baldwin & Toshihiro Okubo, 2014. "Networked FDI: Sales and Sourcing Patterns of Japanese Foreign Affiliates," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(8), pages 1051-1080, August.
    48. Lisa Lechner, 2016. "The domestic battle over the design of non-trade issues in preferential trade agreements," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(5), pages 840-871, September.
    49. Bengoa, Marta & Sanchez-Robles, Blanca, 2003. "Foreign direct investment, economic freedom and growth: new evidence from Latin America," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 529-545, September.
    50. Andreas Dür & Leonardo Baccini & Manfred Elsig, 2014. "The design of international trade agreements: Introducing a new dataset," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 353-375, September.
    51. Selen Guerin & Stefano Manzocchi, 2009. "Political regime and FDI from advanced to emerging countries," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 145(1), pages 75-91, April.
    52. Lisa Lechner, 2018. "Good for some, bad for others: US investors and non-trade issues in preferential trade agreements," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 13(2), pages 163-187, June.
    53. Bruce Blonigen, 2005. "A Review of the Empirical Literature on FDI Determinants," Atlantic Economic Journal, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 33(4), pages 383-403, December.
    54. Dür, Andreas & Baccini, Leonardo & Elsig, Manfred, 2014. "The design of international trade agreements: introducing a new dataset," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 59179, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    55. Polk, Andreas & Schmutzler, Armin & Müller, Adrian, 2014. "Lobbying and the power of multinational firms," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 209-227.
    56. Clara Brandi & Dominique Blümer & Jean-Frédéric Morin, 2019. "When Do International Treaties Matter for Domestic EnvironmentalLegislation?," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 19(4), pages 14-44, November.
    57. Clive George, 2014. "Developments in Regional Trade Agreements and the Environment: 2013 Update," OECD Trade and Environment Working Papers 2014/1, OECD Publishing.
    58. Mariya Aleksynska & Olena Havrylchyk, 2013. "•FDI from the South: The role of institutional distance and natural resources," Post-Print hal-01410591, HAL.
    59. Dong, Yan & Tian, Jinhuan & Ye, Jingjing, 2021. "Environmental regulation and foreign direct investment: Evidence from China's outward FDI," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    60. Clive George, 2014. "Environment and Regional Trade Agreements: Emerging Trends and Policy Drivers," OECD Trade and Environment Working Papers 2014/2, OECD Publishing.
    61. Bergstrand, Jeffrey H. & Egger, Peter, 2007. "A knowledge-and-physical-capital model of international trade flows, foreign direct investment, and multinational enterprises," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(2), pages 278-308, November.
    62. Hofmann,Claudia & Osnago,Alberto & Ruta,Michele, 2017. "Horizontal depth : a new database on the content of preferential trade agreements," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7981, The World Bank.
    63. Ang, James B., 2008. "Determinants of foreign direct investment in Malaysia," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 185-189.
    64. Damian Raess & Dora Sari, 2018. "Labor Provisions in Trade Agreements (LABPTA): Introducing a New Dataset," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 9(4), pages 451-466, November.
    65. Jean-Frédéric Morin & Andreas Dür & Lisa Lechner, 2018. "Mapping the Trade and Environment Nexus: Insights from a New Data Set," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 18(1), pages 122-139, February.
    66. Carlo Piccardi & Lucia Tajoli, 2015. "Are Preferential Agreements Significant for the World Trade Structure? A Network Community Analysis," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 68(2), pages 220-239, May.
    67. Adam, Antonis & Filippaios, Fragkiskos, 2007. "Foreign direct investment and civil liberties: A new perspective," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 1038-1052, December.
    68. Michael E. Porter & Claas van der Linde, 1995. "Toward a New Conception of the Environment-Competitiveness Relationship," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 9(4), pages 97-118, Fall.
    69. Li, Quan & Resnick, Adam, 2003. "Reversal of Fortunes: Democratic Institutions and Foreign Direct Investment Inflows to Developing Countries," International Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 57(1), pages 175-211, January.
    70. Mark N. Harris & László Kónya & László Mátyás, 2002. "Modelling the Impact of Environmental Regulations on Bilateral Trade Flows: OECD, 1990–1996," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(3), pages 387-405, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Wen Yue & Qingxia Lin & Siyu Xu, 2023. "Investment effect of regional trade agreements: an analysis from the perspective of heterogeneous agreement provisions," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Di Ubaldo, Mattia & Gasiorek, Michael, 2022. "Non-trade provisions in trade agreements and FDI," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    2. Henk L. M. Kox & Hugo Rojas‐Romagosa, 2020. "How trade and investment agreements affect bilateral foreign direct investment: Results from a structural gravity model," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(12), December.
    3. Kox, Henk L.M. & Rojas Romasgosa, Hugo, 2019. "Gravity estimations with FDI bilateral data: Potential FDI effects of deep preferential trade agreements," MPRA Paper 96318, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Akhtaruzzaman, M. & Berg, Nathan & Hajzler, Christopher, 2017. "Expropriation risk and FDI in developing countries: Does return of capital dominate return on capital?," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 84-107.
    5. Brandi, Clara & Schwab, Jakob & Berger, Axel & Morin, Jean-Frédéric, 2020. "Do environmental provisions in trade agreements make exports from developing countries greener?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    6. Sébastien Miroudot & Davide Rigo, 2022. "Multinational production and investment provisions in preferential trade agreements [Intra-industry foreign direct investment]," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 22(6), pages 1275-1308.
    7. Federico Carril‐Caccia & Elena Pavlova, 2020. "Mergers and acquisitions & trade: A global value chain analysis," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(3), pages 586-614, March.
    8. Jacopo Timini & Nicola Cortinovis & Fernando López Vicente, 2022. "The heterogeneous effects of trade agreements with labour provisions," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 45(9), pages 2820-2853, September.
    9. Camarero, Mariam & Montolio, Laura & Tamarit, Cecilio, 2019. "What drives German foreign direct investment? New evidence using Bayesian statistical techniques," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 83(C), pages 326-345.
    10. Federico Carril-Caccia & Juliette Milgram Baleix & Jordi Paniagua, 2019. "The foreign direct investment-institution nexus in oil-abundant countries," Working Papers 1903, Department of Applied Economics II, Universidad de Valencia.
    11. Federico Carril-Caccia & Juliette Milgram-Baleix & Jordi Paniagua, 2019. "Foreign Direct Investment in oil-abundant countries: The role of institutions," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(4), pages 1-23, April.
    12. Hong, Seiwoong & Lee, Junyong & Oh, Frederick Dongchuhl & Shin, Donglim, 2023. "Religion and foreign direct investment," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(1).
    13. Mariam Camarero & Laura Montolio & Cecilio Tamarit, 2019. "Determinants of German outward FDI: variable selection using Bayesian statistical," Working Papers 1906, Department of Applied Economics II, Universidad de Valencia.
    14. Raphael Chiappini & François Viaud, 2021. "Macroeconomic, institutional, and sectoral determinants of outward foreign direct investment: Evidence from Japan," Pacific Economic Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(3), pages 404-433, August.
    15. Kox, Henk L.M., 2022. "A micro-macro model of foreign direct investment: knowledge-based gravity forces, self-selection and third-country effects," MPRA Paper 115542, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Bailey, Nicholas, 2018. "Exploring the relationship between institutional factors and FDI attractiveness: A meta-analytic review," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 139-148.
    17. Maria Borga & Perla Ibarlucea Flores & Monika Sztajerowska, 2020. "Drivers of divestment decisions of multinational enterprises - A cross-country firm-level perspective," OECD Working Papers on International Investment 2019/03, OECD Publishing.
    18. Céline Carrère & Marcelo Olarreaga & Damian Raess, 2022. "Labor clauses in trade agreements: Hidden protectionism?," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 453-483, July.
    19. Zongo, Amara, 2020. "The Impact of Restrictive Measures on Bilateral FDI in OECD Countries," MPRA Paper 101929, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    20. Tag, Mehmet Nasih & Degirmen, Suleyman, 2022. "Economic freedom and foreign direct investment: Are they related?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 737-752.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    FDI; Preferential trade agreements; Non-trade provisions; Gravity equations;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F13 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade Policy; International Trade Organizations
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration
    • F21 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Investment; Long-Term Capital Movements

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:poleco:v:75:y:2022:i:c:s0176268022000246. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/505544 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.