Unveiling the impact of foreign investment entry in industrial clusters: the case of Castelló and Sassuolo

Fiorenza Belussi, Luis Martínez-Cháfer and F. Xavier Molina-Morales

European Planning Studies, 2024, vol. 32, issue 9, 2023-2045

Abstract: This paper explores the impact of foreign investment, through acquisitions and mergers of local firms, on leading industrial clusters. While previous research has highlighted the increasing involvement of cluster firms in internationalization and knowledge globalization, the role of foreign investment requires further investigation. Power asymmetries between MNEs and partner firms are prevalent in global value chains, joint ventures, and strategic alliances, shaping the contemporary global economy. By analysing two clusters specialized in ceramic tile production (Castelló, Spain, and Sassuolo, Italy), this study aims to evaluate the impact of foreign investment on leading clusters, specifically distinguishing between multinational enterprises (MNEs) and investment funds. The research examines the perceived effects through a qualitative analysis, capturing the subjective impressions of local actors involved in acquired firms, independent local firms, technological suppliers, and supporting institutions. This paper contributes to the literature by addressing contradictory findings and providing insights into the balance between knowledge absorption and spillovers from MNEs or investment funds to local firms.

Date: 2024
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/09654313.2024.2307339 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:eurpls:v:32:y:2024:i:9:p:2023-2045

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/CEPS20

DOI: 10.1080/09654313.2024.2307339

Access Statistics for this article

European Planning Studies is currently edited by Philip Cooke and Louis Albrechts

More articles in European Planning Studies from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().