Industry dynamics in Growth Triangles: the E&E industry in SIJORI 25 years on

Abstract

Launched in 1989 and encompassing Singapore, the Malaysian state of Johor, and Batam Island in Indonesia, the SIJORI Growth Triangle sought to market these territories as a ‘single investment destination’ offering differing factor endowments in close proximity. Singapore was the ‘core’ of the region; Johor and Batam occupied the land, labour, and resource-intensive ‘non-core’ spaces. During the 1990s, investment flows into the three territories, particularly in the electrical and electronics (E&E) industry, mirrored this division of labour. Through scrutinising trends in E&E firm entries, nationality, and industry branch in Singapore, Johor, and Batam for the 1993–2012/14 period, this article sheds light on the recent evolution of the E&E sector in the Growth Triangle. We document an increasing disconnect between the three nodes that has substantially reduced SIJORI's significance as an integrated industrial cross-border region.