The effects of internationalisation on domestic labour demand by skills: Firm-level evidence for Belgium

We empirically investigate the effects of the internationalisation of Belgian firms on domestic demand for production and non-production workers, which are used as proxies for unskilled and skilled labour. Distinction is made between home-employment effects of firms’ internationalisation, through either international trade or outward foreign direct investment, in highincome countries and in low-income economies. The results of our econometric analysis, using data over 1997-2007, suggest that increasing import shares from low-income countries or investing in those countries significantly reduce... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Cuyvers, Ludo
Dhyne, Emmanuel
Soeng, Reth
Dokumenttyp: doc-type:workingPaper
Erscheinungsdatum: 2010
Verlag/Hrsg.: Brussels: National Bank of Belgium
Schlagwörter: ddc:330 / C23 / F16 / F21 / labour demand / international trade / outward FDI / skilled and unskilled labour / Globalisierung / Auslandsinvestition / Arbeitsnachfrage / Fachkräfte / Ungelernte Arbeitskräfte / Belgien
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26996962
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : http://hdl.handle.net/10419/144418

We empirically investigate the effects of the internationalisation of Belgian firms on domestic demand for production and non-production workers, which are used as proxies for unskilled and skilled labour. Distinction is made between home-employment effects of firms’ internationalisation, through either international trade or outward foreign direct investment, in highincome countries and in low-income economies. The results of our econometric analysis, using data over 1997-2007, suggest that increasing import shares from low-income countries or investing in those countries significantly reduces demand for low-skilled labour, while it increases demand for skilled labour. An increase in exports generally raises the demand for production workers, while it reduces the demand for non-production workers. However, these effects are reversed in the case of exports to low-income countries. Considering the impact of FDI, our results tentatively suggest that the setting up of a new international investment project has a positive impact on demand for non-production workers one period before it is made. This positive effect is offset in the long run, particularly in the case of investment in low-income countries.