IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sym/journl/159y2011i1.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Geography of Multinational Corporations and Functional Specialization in Chinese Cities

Author

Listed:
  • Canfei He

    (Peking University)

  • Xiaojun Xiao

    (Beijing Institute of Architectural Design)

Abstract

There has been a transformation of urban structure from mainly sectoral to functional specialization. This transformation is inextricably interrelated with changes in firms' organization. Some cities host upstream functions of the value chain while others attract production and assembly. This paper investigates the tendency toward functional specialization in Chinese cities by exploring divisions in multinational corporations' (MNC) business operations in China. Based on data from Fortune Global 500 MNCs during 1979-2008, the study finds that MNCs have gradually expanded in China, both functionally and geographically. In that process, similar functions tend to agglomerate in certain cities while complementary functions co-agglomerate in others. The analysis indicates that Chinese cities may start to move toward functional specialization, with upstream functions clustering in the top tier cities of the political and economic urban hierarchy.

Suggested Citation

  • Canfei He & Xiaojun Xiao, 2011. "Geography of Multinational Corporations and Functional Specialization in Chinese Cities," Symphonya. Emerging Issues in Management, Niccolò Cusano University, issue 1 Global .
    • Handle: RePEc:sym:journl:159:y:2011:i:1
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://symphonya.unicusano.it/article/view/2011.1.04he.xiao
    File Function: First version, 2011
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hideki Yamawaki, 2004. "The determinants of geographic configuration of value chain activities: Foreign multinational enterprises in Japanese manufacturing," International Economics and Economic Policy, Springer, vol. 1(2), pages 195-213, January.
    2. Zhao, Simon X.B. & Cai, Jianming & Zhang, Li, 2005. "Asymmetric information as a key determinant for locational choice of MNC headquarters and the development of financial centers: A case for China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 308-331.
    3. Juan Alcácer, 2006. "Location Choices Across the Value Chain: How Activity and Capability Influence Collocation," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 52(10), pages 1457-1471, October.
    4. Cheung, Fanny S.L. & Leung, Wing-Fai, 2007. "International expansion of transnational advertising agencies in China: An assessment of the stages theory approach," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(2), pages 251-268, April.
    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. Chiara F Del Bo, 2014. "Foreign and Spatial Spillovers in the European Electricity Sector," Symphonya. Emerging Issues in Management, Niccolò Cusano University, issue 1 Global .
    2. Canfei He & Yi Zhou, 2015. "Firm Dynamics and Regional Inequality of Productivity in China," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 1527, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Sep 2015.
    3. Aleksandra Kordalska & Magdalena Olczyk & Roman Stöllinger & Zuzana Zavarská, 2022. "Functional Specialisation in EU Value Chains: Methods for Identifying EU Countries’ Roles in International Production Networks," wiiw Research Reports 461, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.

    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. Lydia Bals & Jon F. Kirchoff & Kai Foerstl, 2016. "Exploring the reshoring and insourcing decision making process: toward an agenda for future research," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 102-116, December.
    2. Heather Berry, 2017. "Managing valuable knowledge in weak IP protection countries," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 48(7), pages 787-807, September.
    3. René Belderbos & Bart Leten & Shinya Suzuki, 2017. "Scientific research, firm heterogeneity, and foreign R&D locations of multinational firms," Journal of Economics & Management Strategy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(3), pages 691-711, September.
    4. Zheying Wu & Robert Salomon, 2016. "Does imitation reduce the liability of foreignness? Linking distance, isomorphism, and performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(12), pages 2441-2462, December.
    5. Delgado, Mercedes & Porter, Michael E. & Stern, Scott, 2014. "Clusters, convergence, and economic performance," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(10), pages 1785-1799.
    6. Naveen Kumar Jain & Tanvi Kothari & Vikas Kumar, 2016. "Location Choice Research: Proposing New Agenda," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 56(3), pages 303-324, June.
    7. Evan Rawley & Robert Seamans, 2015. "Intra-Firm Spillovers? The Stock and Flow Effects of Collocation," Working Papers 15-01, Center for Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau.
    8. Che Xinwei & Bu Hui & Liu John J., 2014. "A Theoretical Analysis of Financial Agglomeration in China Based on Information Asymmetry," Journal of Systems Science and Information, De Gruyter, vol. 2(2), pages 111-129, April.
    9. Ron Boschma & Koen Frenken, 2011. "The emerging empirics of evolutionary economic geography," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 11(2), pages 295-307, March.
    10. Rajneesh Narula & Tiju Prasad Kodiyat, 2014. "How Home Country Weaknesses Can Constrain Further EMNE Growth: Extrapolating from the Example of India," John H Dunning Centre for International Business Discussion Papers jhd-dp2014-01, Henley Business School, University of Reading.
    11. Keith D. Brouthers & Liang Chen & Sali Li & Noman Shaheer, 2022. "Charting new courses to enter foreign markets: Conceptualization, theoretical framework, and research directions on non-traditional entry modes," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(9), pages 2088-2115, December.
    12. Denitsa Hazarbassanova Blagoeva & Peter D. Ørberg Jensen & Hemant Merchant, 2020. "Services in International Business Studies: A Replication and Extension of Merchant and Gaur (2008)," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 427-457, June.
    13. Miaoxi Zhao & Xingjian Liu & Ben Derudder & Ye Zhong & Wei Shen, 2015. "Mapping producer services networks in mainland Chinese cities," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 52(16), pages 3018-3034, December.
    14. Joris Knoben & L. A. G. (Leon) Oerlemans & R. P. J. H. (Roel) Rutten, 2008. "The Effects of Spatial Mobility on the Performance of Firms," Economic Geography, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 84(2), pages 157-183, April.
    15. Lilach Nachum & Srilata Zaheer & Shulamith Gross, 2008. "Does It Matter Where Countries Are? Proximity to Knowledge, Markets and Resources, and MNE Location Choices," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 54(7), pages 1252-1265, July.
    16. Putzhammer, Moritz & Puck, Jonas & Lindner, Thomas, 2020. "Changes in foreign operation modes: A review and research agenda," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 29(1).
    17. Otto Raspe & Frank Van Oort, 2014. "Entrepreneurial opportunity in innovative urban environments," Chapters, in: Charlie Karlsson & Börje Johansson & Kiyoshi Kobayashi & Roger R. Stough (ed.), Knowledge, Innovation and Space, chapter 2, pages 29-50, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    18. Gabrielsson, Peter & Gabrielsson, Mika & Gabrielsson, Hannele, 2008. "International advertising campaigns in fast-moving consumer goods companies originating from a SMOPEC country," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 17(6), pages 714-728, December.
    19. Tiago Loncan, 2021. "The Effects of Project Scale on FDI Location Choices: Evidence from Emerging Economies," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 61(2), pages 157-205, April.
    20. Heather Berry, 2020. "Internationalizing firm innovations: The influence of multimarket overlap in knowledge activities," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(6), pages 963-985, August.

    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:sym:journl:159:y:2011:i:1. 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: Silvio M. Brondoni (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.unicusano.it/ .

    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.