Foreign direct investment flows and urban dynamics in a developing country: a case study of Korean activities in Suzhou, China

Abstract

This paper provides some new perspectives on the way that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) influences local urban growth in recipient cities, via a case study of Korean firms in Suzhou, China. An agglomeration of firms, comprising a part of the global production network of Korean firms, provided employment in knowledge intensive manufacturing which has had significant flow-on effects expressed in the co-location of Korean service activities, and a Korean expatriate community. The paper argues that this outcome has been shaped by particular institutional settings which facilitated the agglomerations of inter-related firms and the creation of higher standards of urban liveability. The interacti..