Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

Stockholm School of Economics Asia Working Paper Series,
Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm China Economic Research Institute

No 2017-45: Foreign Direct Investment and Urban Inequality: Evidence from Chinese Cities

Anders C. Johansson (), Dan Liu () and Maosheng Zhen
Additional contact information
Anders C. Johansson: Stockholm China Economic Research Institute, Postal: Stockholm School of Economics, P.O. Box 6501, SE-113 83 Stockholm, Sweden
Dan Liu: Shanghai University of Finance and Economics
Maosheng Zhen: Shanghai University of Finance and Economics

Abstract: In this paper we examine the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on local urban wage inequality in China. We find that the within-city college premium is larger for cities characterized by a higher degree of FDI penetration. We then try to establish the causal impact of FDI penetration on city inequality using historical Christian influence as an instrumental variable. In addition, firm-level evidence shows that FDI has amplified both between-firm inequality and within-firm inequality. FDI firms do not only hire relatively more high-skilled workers but also provide relatively higher wages to high-skilled workers compared to domestic firms. Finally, an individual-level analysis shows that FDI has a spillover effect on low-skilled workers, but the magnitude of that effect is much smaller than the effect on high-skilled workers.

Keywords: foreign direct investment; skill premium; inequality; China

JEL-codes: F21; I30; R11

42 pages, November 15, 2017

Full text files

hascer2017-045.pdf PDF-file Full text

Download statistics

Questions (including download problems) about the papers in this series should be directed to NanHee Lee ()
Report other problems with accessing this service to Sune Karlsson ().

RePEc:hhs:hascer:2017-045This page generated on 2024-09-13 22:14:52.