Do imports and inward FDI impact domestic R&D capability? Empirical evidence from BRIC economies

Citation

Amanollahnejad A, Arte P & Arakpogun EO (2025) Do imports and inward FDI impact domestic R&D capability? Empirical evidence from BRIC economies. In: Arte P, Elsahn Z, Arakpogun E & Cornwell AAD (eds.) Research Handbook on Sustainable Business Practices in the Global South. Edward Elgar Publishing, pp. 40-50. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035330133.00010

Abstract
We explore the premise that imports and inward foreign direct investment (FDI) improve the research and development (R&D) capabilities of emerging economies using data for the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) economies between 1960 and 2020. Results show that imports have a negative impact on domestic R&D capability, whereas inward FDI has no significant impact. Furthermore, the premise that imports and FDI from high-income countries stimulate domestic innovation through spillovers is not supported. Results do suggest that the key instigator of innovation in the BRIC economies is the indigenous investment in R&D, and not the imitation of imported technology or absorption of knowledge spillovers.

Keywords
BRIC; FDI; Import; R&D