East-Asian Lead Firms’ Impact on the Electronics Industry of the V4 Countries: Samsung and Its Competitors

Abstract

The paper investigates the rapid, FDI-driven expansion of the electronics industry in the V4 countries from the second half of the nineties through their inclusion into the global value chains of East-Asian lead firms with their home base in countries, such as in Korea, Taiwan or Singapore and China. The paper analyses opportunities for upgrading of East-Asian manufacturing subsidiaries and their local suppliers in the V4 region towards higher value-added activities, and the level of the subsidiaries’ embeddedness after 30 years of their appearance as well as their impact on trade relations between East-Asia and the V4.