Lecture: How Ownership Structures Spillovers for Innovation: Private Sector Inbreeding in Chinese Manufacturing 

Speaker: Fan XIA, Permanent Associate Professor in ESC Rennes School of Business, France

Time: 10:00-12:00, July 15

Venue: Rm. 206, Tongji A Building

Abstract: We examine how ownership structures knowledge spillovers among Chinese manufacturing firms. The paper links three literatures: 1) the interpenetration of institutions and regional networks; 2) the contribution of geography to innovation; and 3) private sector growth in emerging markets. We argue that private sector firms, because they are excluded from the internal networks of the state and of foreign owners, interact more with each other and have a higher percentage of weak ties for information and job search. Thus we find that product innovation in the private sector benefits more from regional agglomeration than firms owned by the state or foreign corporations. We also ask, following an extensive literature, whether large firms act as hegemons or support local innovation. We find evidence of hegemonic behavior that is strongest on other private sector firms. We also find that, consistent with earlier research, small firm agglomeration increases innovation, mostly within the private sector. Higher receptivity to spillovers combined with mutual influence indicates an inbred network within the private sector. Last, firms not privatized by the state and 100% owned by private investors are more inbred. We discuss our findings for research on geography, institutions, innovation and the political economy of emerging markets.

Speaker Bio：Fan XIA is a Permanent Associate Professor in ESC Rennes School of Business, France. He acquired doctor degree from University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). The research interests focus on Corporate Ownership and Governance, Innovation, Corporate Growth, M&A and Joint Venture.