Digitalization of the Economy as a Key Factor in Increasing the Investment Attractiveness and Export Potential of Ukraine in the Context of Intensified Investment Activity of TNCs
Kim O. O.

Kim, Oleksii O. (2025) “Digitalization of the Economy as a Key Factor in Increasing the Investment Attractiveness and Export Potential of Ukraine in the Context of Intensified Investment Activity of TNCs.” The Problems of Economy 3:46–54.
https://doi.org/10.32983/2222-0712-2025-3-46-54

Section: Economics and national economy management

UDC 339.94:339.727.22:004

Abstract:
The article is dedicated to a comprehensive analysis of the role of economic digitalization as a key strategic factor in enhancing Ukraine’s investment attractiveness and export potential. This study becomes particularly relevant in the context of post-war recovery and the urgent need to stimulate the investment activities of transnational corporations (TNCs), which are critically important for the structural modernization of the economy. It is hypothesized that in today’s globalized world, digitalization has shifted from being an auxiliary tool to a fundamental factor of geo-economic competitiveness. The aim of this work is to determine the role of digitalization as a structural foundation for increasing Ukraine’s investment attractiveness and export potential, as well as to identify changes in the interrelationships between these economic categories under conditions of full-scale war in order to assess the potential for forming the investment attractiveness of the Ukrainian economy for multinational corporations (MNCs) and enhancing global competitiveness through the digitalization of the economy. The article presents a correlation analysis of the dynamics of key macroeconomic indicators for the period 2019–2024 (investments in the digital economy, the volume of foreign direct investment (FDI), and the volume of exports of goods and services). The results of the analysis for the pre-war period (2019–2021) clearly demonstrated a strong positive correlation (Pearson coefficient 0.9728) between investments in digitalization and total export volume. This unequivocally confirmed the hypothesis that digital transformation was a stable structural factor that directly increased the country’s export potential, reflected in improved logistics efficiency, simplified international documentation processes, and integration into global digital platforms. However, an analysis of wartime data (2022–2024) shows a fundamental shift in economic realities. A loss and dissociation of previously stable correlation relationships have been identified. Specifically, the correlation between exports and investment in the digital economy has turned slightly negative (-0.0651), while between exports and FDI it has become sharply negative (-0.8461). This indicates that the dynamics of investment and export flows are increasingly determined by other, mostly non-market factors (security risks, logistical disruptions, destruction of production capacities). It was also found that TNC investments in the ICT sector were redirected from export activities to supporting domestic resilience and the functioning of critical infrastructure. The conclusions emphasize that although digitalization has not lost its potential as an investment magnet, a modern state strategy is required for its effective use in post-war recovery and attracting TNC interests. Further research should focus on substantiating a strategy capable of reintegrating digital transformation, foreign investment, and the sustainable recovery of Ukraine’s export potential.

Keywords: digitalization of the economy, investment attractiveness, export potential, transnational corporations (TNCs), post-war recovery of Ukraine, stimulation of TNC investment activities.

Fig.: 3. Tabl.: 7. Formulae: 1. Bibl.: 15.

Kim Oleksii O. – Candidate of Sciences (Economics), Associate Professor, Associate Professor, Department of Marketing, Management and Entrepreneurship, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University (4 Svobody Square, Kharkіv, 61022, Ukraine)
Email: alexeykim@karazin.ua

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