Abstract

Purpose: This study estimates the threshold values of institutional quality through investigating the non-linear effect of six sub-indices of Worldwide Governance Indicators on FDI inflows in 34 developing countries in Asia and Eastern Europe over the period from 2000-2017. Research Design, data and methodology: GMM EGLS is employed which does not include the lagged value of the dependent variable as an independent variable. As a proxy for the institutional quality, either one of the six sub-indices of WGI from World Bank or the composite index obtained through a principal component analysis is used in a separate model. Results: An improvement in institutional quality, when the quality stays below a certain threshold level, does not increase FDI inflows, and only when the quality is above the threshold, it can positively influence FDI inflows. The threshold values of political stability and absence of violence, government effectiveness, and rule of law are relatively higher than those of the other dimensions of WGI. Conclusion: Institutional quality of the developing economies of Asia and Eastern Europe has a non-linear effect on FDI inflows. The target countries need to upgrade their institutional quality above the threshold in order to attract more FDIs.