Foreign direct investment in Morocco

Bouoiyour, Jamal (2004): Foreign direct investment in Morocco. Published in: “Foreign Direct Investment in Developing Countries: Leveraging the Role of Multinationals”.Agence Française de Développement and Institut Français des Relations Internationales (2004): pp. 149-167.

Abstract

In this paper, we first compare the characteristics of Moroccan and foreign manufacturing firms between 1987 and 1996, and finds, as expected, that the latter perform better in terms of productivity, are technologically more advanced and more export-oriented, and pay higher wages than the former. Second, based on ongoing research, we suggest that foreign presence may have a positive impact on Moroccan productivity but that the relationship depends on local absorptive capacity or the technological gap (i.e. distance between foreign and local firms in terms of total factor productivity). It would appear that the larger the technological gap, the greater the spillover, up to a certain point. One interesting implication is that the effects of FDI may vary greatly across industries. This line of research deserves further investigation and may call for more appropriate sectoral policy response to foster spillovers between foreign and local firms

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: FDI, Technological gap, Spillovers
• Subjects: F - International Economics > F2 - International Factor Movements and International Business > F23 - Multinational Firms ; International Business; F - International Economics > F2 - International Factor Movements and International Business > F21 - International Investment ; Long-Term Capital Movements

References

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