Bilateral Political Relations and the Impact of Sovereign Wealth Fund Investment
49 Pages Posted: 3 Nov 2009 Last revised: 16 Oct 2021
Date Written: March 9, 2011
Abstract
We examine the role of bilateral political relations in sovereign wealth fund (SWF) investment decisions. Our empirical results suggest that political relations play a role in SWF decision making. Contrary to predictions based on the FDI and political relations literature, we find that relative to nations in which they do not invest, SWFs prefer to invest in nations with which they have weaker political relations. Using a two-stage Cragg model, we find that political relations are an important factor in why SWFs invest but matter less in determining how much to invest. These results suggest that SWFs behave differently than other economic agents. Consistent with the FDI and political relations literature, we find that SWF investment has a positive (negative) impact for relatively closed (open) countries. Our results suggest that SWFs use - at least partially - non-financial motives in investment decisions.
Keywords: sovereign wealth fund, investment determinants, political relations, trade, policy
JEL Classification: G15, G18, F34
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?
Recommended Papers
-
The Impact of Sovereign Wealth Funds on Global Financial Markets
By Roland Beck and Michael Fidora
-
Sovereign Wealth Funds: Their Investment Strategies and Performance
By Vidhi Chhaochharia and Luc Laeven
-
Firm Values and Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments
By Kathryn L. Dewenter, Xi Han, ...
-
Firm Values and Sovereign Wealth Fund Investments
By Kathryn L. Dewenter, Xi Han, ...
-
The Investment Strategies of Sovereign Wealth Funds
By Shai Bernstein, Josh Lerner, ...
-
The Investment Strategies of Sovereign Wealth Funds
By Shai Bernstein, Josh Lerner, ...
-
What is Different About Government-Controlled Acquirers in Cross-Border Acquisitions?
-
What is Different About Government-Controlled Acquirers in Cross-Border Deals?
-
Sovereign Wealth Funds: Investment Choices and Implications Around the World