Greenfield and M&A FDI have a strong, bi-directional causality in industrial countries. In developing countries,greenfield FDI does not precede M&A FDI, but a rise ins lead to higher greenfield investment.
FDI initially driven by the purchase of existing companies results in fresh investment in the following years. Thus, for instance, the end of the privatization process in Latin America need not dry up FDI but may instead give way to rising greenfield investment. • The relationship between domestic investment and the two types of FDI is rather complex. In industrial countries, domestic investment leads M&A FDI but is led by greenfield investment. In developing countries, domestic investment leads both types of FDI, but not the reverse. In the case of industrial countries, their high degree of capital market integration and widespread availability of enterprise-related information may make the relationship between foreign and domestic investment more likely to be bi-directional.
Finally, regarding the relationship between economic growth and FDI, in industrial countries growth leads both greenfield and M&A FDI. In developing countries, growth only precedes greenfield FDI. In any sample, either type of FDI has no significant impact on economic growth, nor do they help predict it. This may indicate that given that economic growth is determined by a multitude of factors, FDI simply cannot account for the majority or the most important of them. Furthermore, it is likely that the relationship between FDI and growth depend largely on third factors driving both variables. For instance, in countries where FDI rises as result of higher import tariffs, we should expect a negative relationship between FDI and economic growth. The opposite would occur when FDI rises because of an improvement in public infrastructure and government institutions.20 On the other hand, GDP growth can capture FDI’s most relevant determinants. Given that economic growth is arguably the most important sign of profitable investment opportunities in a country, it can serve as a strong pull factor for FDI.