| Abstract [eng] |
Factors of Attracting Foreign Direct Investment to Lithuanian Regions SUMMARY 57 pages, 23 pictures, 8 tables, 43 references. The main purpose of this master thesis is to estimate the factors determining the attraction of foreign direct investment to the regions of Lithuania. In order to achieve the purpose of the work, the following tasks are formulated: 1) according to the research, to analyze the concept of foreign direct investment and the positive and negative impact of foreign direct innvestments on the national economy; 2) to compose a research methodology for the study of attracting foreign direct investment to Lithuanian regions; 3) to present dynamics of foreign direct investment in Lithuania by administrative territories; 4) to estimate the importance of foreign direct investment factors in the distribution of foreign direct investment in Lithuanian regions. The work consists of three main parts. The first part of the thesis evaluates the theoretical aspects of foreign direct investment attraction. The second part of the thesis presents the research hypothesis and the research variables, describes the research methods that were used in the research. The third part of the thesis is devoted to evaluate the factors determining the distribution of foreign direct investment in Lithuanian regions and to analyze the results of the research. The following research methods are used for the purpose of the work: analysis of scientific literature and synthesis of main ideas, data systematization, generalization, dynamic analysis, data grouping and processing, correlation analysis, regression analysis, graphical representation of data. The results of the correlation and regression analysis reveal that the economic development of the regions influences the attraction of foreign direct investment to the regions of Lithuania. Larger Lithuanian counties with higher GDP per capita are able to attract more foreign direct investment. The second most important factor influencing the attraction of foreign direct investment into Lithuanian regions is the availability of qualified labor force. Regions wich are highly occupied by educated people has higher foreign direct investment flows. The results of the research show that not only the number of educated persons in the region is important for foreign investors, but also the size of the employment and the labor supply. The results of correlation and regression analyzes disprove the research hypothesis that labor costs have a greater impact on attracting foreign direct investment to Lithuanian regions than the availability of qualified labor. Foreign investors are investing more in regions where labor costs are higher and the region is able to offer competent educated potential employees. Based on the results of the study conducted, is proposed to the Government of Lithuania to work on the reduction of regional disparities in order to attract foreign university graduates to especially smaller regions of Lithuania. It is also proposed to reduce the average wage gaps between regions. In order to attract higher education graduates to smaller regions of Lithuania, it is important to ensure the reward that they could receive in the major Lithuanian counties. |
