Vol. 21 No. 44 (2026)

Artículos

Foreing direct investment and its role in economic development: Theory and empirical evidence

Published 2026-06-12

  • Cuauhtémoc Calderón Villarreal

Cuauhtémoc Calderón Villarreal
Departamento de Estudios Económicos, El Colegio de la Frontera Norte.

Abstract

This article analyzes the role of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the economic development of peripheral capitalist countries, combining a theoretical review with recent empirical evidence. At the conceptual level, it discusses the contributions of Hymer, Caves, and Kojima, highlighting the dual nature of FDI: on the one hand, a vector for the transfer of capital, technology, and organizational capabilities; on the other, a mechanism of oligopolistic control that may reinforce dependency relations. Empirically, the article examines the procyclical behavior and unequal global distribution of FDI flows, which remain concentrated in developed economies and only marginally directed toward the periphery. It also compares the effects of export-oriented, trade-complementary FDI in Asia (Japanese-type) with the experience of Latin America, where vertically integrated FDI (American-type) predominates and does not consistently promote growth or reduce inequality. The analysis concludes that the developmental impact of FDI depends on national development strategies, institutional quality, and the state’s capacity to channel FDI toward structural transformation.

Keywords

foreing direct investment, multinacional enterprises, economic development, peripheral countries

PDF (Spanish)

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