Perceptions of Emerging Market Foreign Direct Investment: The case of Chinese FDI in the United States

Abstract

There is an ongoing debate in international business research as to how and where theory should be directed or changed to address the evolution of the internationalization process as it relates to the rise in emerging market firm activity. While all firms face challenges in any foreign venture, identifying and addressing the factors unique to emerging nation firms such as those from China is necessary for management to develop strategic plans for sustainability and for governments and investment agents to attract, encourage and aid these firms through the investment process. Through analysis of U.S managerial perceptions of Chinese foreign direct investment in the U.S., this research provides additional insight on factors affecting the internationalization process of Chinese firms in the U.S. Since the Chinese firms are deemed deficient in certain firm-specific assets in comparison to advanced counterparts, it is posited that acquiring strategic resources provides a strong motivation for investing in developed economies. This dissertation argues that the process of foreign direct investment by emerging market firms in developed economies varies from the processes presented in traditional internationalization and cannot be directly evaluated on extant theory. It also addresses the proposition that while institutional and industry factors are influences on strategic intent and entry mode, firm-specific assets play a crucial role in foreign investment. Therefore this study contributes to the international business literature by exploring and isolating factors unique to Chinese firms confirming that existing frameworks need to be extended for future empirical analysis and theory building regarding emerging market firms investing in developed economies.