Growth in the European Union: the role of FDI in factor efficiency

The impact of foreign-direct-investment (FDI) on economic-growth has been studied extensively. The results are, however, inconclusive due to the use of inappropriate methodology and/or the disregard of the absorptive capacity of the receiving country, which is particularly affected by the existence of FDI. Starting from an analytical growth-accounting framework to deduce the estimated specifications, an econometric analysis with panel data was conducted for 27 European Union countries over the period 2000-2019 to highlight the importance of FDI in improving factor efficiency and hence economic growth. The results also highlight the relevance of openness to international trade, imports of machinery and transport equipment, and domestic investment in R&D as facilitators of the process of technology absorption and knowledge diffusion from FDI.