The Role of Regulatory Quality on the Impact of Foreign Direct Investment on Economic Growth

The literature review of economic growth shows that the factors which are known as the growth engine do not have the same impact on countries with different socioeconomic structures. In this way, the different levels of institutional quality can be considered as the main determinants of exploiting of economic growth factors such as foreign direct investment (FDI). In order to evaluate the performance of institutions, there are several indicators. One of them is “good governance”. A good governance is known as an effective factor to develop the economic growth, improve the work environment and absorb domestic and foreign investment. “Good governance” indicator comprises six components: Voice & Accountability, Political stability, Government Effectiveness, Regulatory Quality, and Rule of Law & Control of corruption. Our main purpose in this study is to evaluate the effect of regulatory quality indictor as a representative of good governance on FDI in four different country groups classified by income Levels. Therefore, in this paper, the effect of the regulatory quality indictor on the relationship between foreign direct investment and economic growth in four different country groups classified by income level is investigated. The panel smooth transition method over the period of 2002-2016 is applied. The result shows that: 1- There is a positive and significant relation between regulatory quality and economic growth. 2- The main hypothesis is confirmed in the Lower Middle income countries and Upper Middle income countries