T h e M u l t i n a t i o n a l B u s i n e s s R e v i e w Multinational Corporations and Host Country Receptivity: Perceptions from Three Asian Countries

An improved investment environment and aggressive foreign direct investment (FDI) liberalization strategies have enabled Asian countries, such as Korea and Vietnam, to attract sharply increased FDI inflows and multinational corporations (MNCs) during the 1990s. Indonesia, however, has suffered from stagnated FDI inflows and, in particular, continued divestment since late 1998. In this paper, we report the survey results of recent changes in attitudes toward foreign MNCs perceived by government officials and business leaders in these three Asian countries, and investigate the major individual attribute determinants of their assessment of foreign investments using econometric tools. We also discuss policy implications of these findings for host-country FDI policy makers and the international business community.