Abstract
Does local internet diffusion spur manufacturing performance in developing countries? To answer this question, we conduct instrumental variable estimations, using repeated cross-section data on 44,073 manufacturing firms from 109 developing and transition economies, and find large positive spillover effects of local email incidence on manufacturing firms sales and sales per worker. This evidence is driven by the local dissemination of email technology within industries rather than across industries. However, further analysis stresses that inter-industry spillovers are actually U-shaped, that is, negative at low email incidence rates but turning positive once incidence reaches approximately 50% of the local universe of firms. This suggests that local internet spillovers across industries are subject to network effects. Last, these threshold effects seem related to the presence of outward-oriented firms, which are known to exhibit higher digital absorptive capacity. Overall, this paper shows that local industrialisation paces may strongly diverge between poorly and highly digitalised environments.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
