German Multinational Firms in India

Inhaltsangabe:Introduction:Global foreign direct investment (FDI) has risen sharply in the 1990s. At the same time and even more strikingly FDI in emerging market economies has spurred dramatically. Arising at the end of the 20th century and only known from 19th century trading companies as the East India Company, FDI in developing and emerging markets represents today a new phenomenon. Traditionally, literature has mostly focused on FDI between industrialized countries, and publications on FDI in emerging markets remain relatively sparse. Yet, the rise of large emerging market countries such as China and India has attracted interest of an increasing number of multinational firms (MNFs). The combination of high real economic growth and new FDI regulation in these countries creates a specific environment where MNFs have to adjust corporate strategies for successful market penetration. Further, government?s perception of FDI has changed towards increasingly attracting FDI.The present diploma thesis attempts to contribute to the broad issue of understanding why firms become multinational and why they invest in specific countries. Determinants affecting corporate strategies of MNFs and the influence of FDI related economic policies will be specifically analyzed for the case of German MNFs in India for two reasons:Firstly, India is of particular interest as its economy has been opened up remarkably for FDI as a consequence of the economic reform process in the early 1990s. FDI in India, one of the Asian emerging market countries, may therefore suitably represent recent FDI trends to developing and emerging market countries. FDI analysis in these countries often concentrates on China. Given that India is most prominently referred to the Chinese case in terms of economic perspective and potential FDI growth, the analysis allows to draw attention on a second large and prospective FDI player in the region.Secondly, a ?newly? available firm-level dataset from the Deutsche Bundesbank provides detailed data on German FDI in India. The dataset allows to jointly analyze determinants of MNF decisions and host country location factors.The following thesis attempts to provide a (1) profound theoretical background, (2) empirical validation of theoretical predictions using firm-level data and management survey results and (3) implications on corporate strategy and economic policy.Project Organization:Section 2 provides the theoretical foundation by […]