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Nigel Driffield

Professor of international business, Warwick Business School, University of Warwick

I am a Professor of International Business at Warwick Business School, having held a similar post at Aston Business School for 10 years. I have a PhD from Reading University, and have published some 70 academic papers across a range of disciplines including international business, regional science, finance, and labour and industrial economics.
I currently hold a Leverhulme Fellowship, investigating the impact of internationally mobile capital on both home and source countries, particularly in terms of competitiveness and labour markets.

Since my PhD my main area of research has been the economics of international business. The focus of this is the nexus between firm strategy, such as location decisions, and local responses seeking to influence this in both home and host country. One strand of my work therefore includes both work rooted in management and strategy literature, explaining for example location decisions or firm performance, as well as financing decisions. The other is concerned with the impacts of international capital flows.

The literature on foreign direct investment (FDI) and multinational enterprise tends to divide into studies seeking to examine the motives for firms undertaking FDI (international economics, international business) and those that seek to evaluate the impacts of inward FDI on host countries, regions or individual markets (labour economics, industrial economics, regional science). I have made significant contributions in both of these literatures, including four papers in the Journal of International Business Studies, and I am widely cited in both.

Royal Mail takeover has benefits but poses risk to those reliant on UK’s national postal service

Jun 20, 2024 05:37 am UTC| Insights & Views

Selling a British institution to a foreign billionaire is a big deal. In the case of Royal Mail, that deal is not yet done, but the companys board has agreed to the move in principle. The 508-year-old postal service,...

The reality of trade deals and how Britain is not prepared to negotiate them

Jan 27, 2017 15:56 pm UTC| Insights & Views Economy

Britains prime minister is the first foreign leader to visit the new American president, Donald Trump. They have lots to discuss international security, immigration, the special relationship. There is also much talk of...

Economy

European Stocks Steady Amid Earnings Reports and Inflation Data; Oil Dips on Inventory Rise

European equity markets remained largely flat Wednesday as investors digested fresh corporate earnings and inflation data. Germanys DAX rose 0.3%, Frances CAC 40 held steady, and the UKs FTSE 100 slipped 0.1%. Markets have...

Gold Prices Dip as Easing US-China Tensions and Soft CPI Weigh on Safe-Haven Demand

Gold prices declined in Asian trading on Wednesday, pressured by improving US-China trade relations and weaker-than-expected US inflation data. Spot gold dropped 0.7% to $3,228.95 per ounce, while June gold futures fell...

U.S.-China Trade Uncertainty Threatens Soybean Exports and Farm Income

U.S. soybean exports could drop by 20% and farmer incomes may take a major hit if the U.S.-China trade dispute isnt resolved soon, according to agribusiness consultancy AgResource. Despite a temporary truce in the trade...

South Korea Unveils $3.25B Support Plan for SMEs Facing U.S. Tariff Risks

South Korea has announced a comprehensive support package to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) potentially impacted by newly proposed U.S. tariffs. The government said on Wednesday the aid will total 4.6...

Australian Wages Rise in Q1 as RBA Eyes Potential Rate Cut

Australian wages rose 0.9% in the March quarter, slightly surpassing expectations, driven mainly by one-off government awards in childcare and aged care, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Annual...

Politics

Mukesh Ambani to Meet Trump and Qatar’s Emir in Doha Amid Strengthening Global Ties

Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries (NSE:RELI), is set to meet U.S. President Donald Trump and Qatars Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Doha on Wednesday, according to sources cited by...

Israel Warns Yemen Ports as Houthis Fire Missile Amid Gulf Tour

Israel issued evacuation alerts on Wednesday for three key ports in YemenRas Issa, Hodeidah, and Salifciting missile threats from the Iran-backed Houthi group. The warning came shortly after Israel said it had intercepted...

Vietnam Cracks Down on Counterfeits Amid US Trade Talks

Vietnams Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has called on the countrys anti-counterfeit task force to intensify efforts against fake goods, trade fraud, and smuggling, amid growing pressure from the United States over trade...

Trump Begins Gulf Tour with Surprise Syria Sanctions Lift, Major Gulf Investment Deals

U.S. President Donald Trump kicked off a high-profile visit to the Gulf region on Wednesday with a controversial move to lift all U.S. sanctions on Syrias Islamist-led government. The announcement came during a speech in...

Trump Approval Rises as Recession Worries Ease, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Shows

President Donald Trumps approval rating rose to 44% this week, up from 42% in late April, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The uptick comes as Americans express fewer concerns about the economy and the likelihood of...

Science

Kennedy Sets September Deadline to Uncover Autism Causes Amid Controversy

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a bold plan to identify the cause of autism by September 2025. Speaking at a cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Kennedy declared a global...

AstraZeneca’s Imfinzi Gets US Approval for Bladder Cancer Treatment

AstraZenecas drug Imfinzi (NASDAQ: AZN) has received U.S. approval to treat adult patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, a significant advancement in cancer therapy. The approval allows Imfinzi to be used in...

Sanofi’s New Hemophilia Drug Qfitlia Gains FDA Approval with Breakthrough Bimonthly Dosing

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qfitlia, a groundbreaking hemophilia treatment by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NASDAQ: SNY). Designed for patients aged 12 and older with hemophilia A or B,...

FDA Vaccine Chief Peter Marks Resigns Amid Controversy Over Transparency

Peter Marks, the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) top vaccine official, has resigned after reportedly being forced out by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), according to The Wall Street Journal....

Museums have tons of data, and AI could make it more accessible − but standardizing and organizing it across fields won’t be easy

Ice cores in freezers, dinosaurs on display, fish in jars, birds in boxes, human remains and ancient artifacts from long gone civilizations that few people ever see museum collections are filled with all this and more....

Technology

Foxconn Q1 Profit Surges 72% on AI Server Demand Amid Trade Uncertainty

Taiwans Foxconn, the worlds largest contract electronics manufacturer, is expected to report a 72% surge in first-quarter net profit, driven by strong demand for artificial intelligence servers. According to a consensus...

Chinese Chipmaker SiCarrier Targets $2.8B Funding Amid Huawei Ties and Rising Ambitions

SiCarrier, a state-owned Chinese semiconductor equipment startup backed by Shenzhen, is seeking to raise $2.8 billion in one of the largest yuan-denominated fundraisings of the year. Founded in 2021, the company has gained...

NVIDIA Stock Soars on AI Deals During Trump’s Middle East Trip

NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) shares surged 5.5% midday Tuesday following CEO Jensen Huangs participation in U.S. President Donald Trumps high-profile visit to the Middle East. The trip has already delivered major wins for the AI...

UN Urges Global Action on Autonomous Weapons Amid AI Arms Race

Nations are convening at the United Nations to revive efforts to regulate autonomous weapons powered by artificial intelligence, amid growing concern over their rapid use in global conflicts like Ukraine and Gaza. The...

China Accelerates Humanoid Robot Development to Tackle Labor Woes and Global Competition

In a Shanghai warehouse, Chinese startup AgiBot is training humanoid robots to perform everyday tasks like folding clothes and making sandwiches. Operating 17 hours a day, the site collects crucial data to enhance the...