| Abstract: |
This paper studies the impact that immigrant innovators have on the global
activities of U.S. firms by analyzing detailed data on patent applications and
on the operations of the foreign affiliates of U.S. multinational firms. The
results indicate that increases in the share of a firm's innovation performed
by inventors of a particular ethnicity are associated with increases in the
share of that firm's affiliate activity in their native countries. Ethnic
innovators also appear to facilitate the disintegration of innovative activity
across borders and to allow U.S. multinationals to form new affiliates abroad
without the support of local joint venture partners. Thus, this paper points
out that immigration can enhance the competitiveness of multinational firms. |