Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research, volume 38 Trends of Technologies and Innovations in Economic and Social Studies (TTIESS 2017) Geographical features of investment activity in Stavropol Krai Completed with support from Russian Foundation for Basic Research, Grant 16-36-00095 mol_а Lilia Korneva Natalia Schitova Department for Socio-Economic Geography, Department for Socio-Economic Geography, Geoinformatics & Tourism Geoinformatics & Tourism North-Caucasus Federal University North-Caucasus Federal University 355000, Stavropol, Russia 355000, Stavropol, Russia [email protected] Vitaly Belozerov Rakim Mahmudov Department for Socio-Economic Geography, Department for Socio-Economic Geography, Geoinformatics & Tourism Geoinformatics & Tourism North-Caucasus Federal University North-Caucasus Federal University 355000, Stavropol, Russia 355000, Stavropol, Russia Abstract – The article focuses on the study of territorial development of the regional economy, have an impact on features of the regional investment activity, whereas the public production and employment, as well as promote Stavropol Krai is used as the example. The main objective is to structural shifts in the development of industries and various identify the specifics of the effect of intra-regional factors on spheres of economy. In this regard, the analysis of the spatial attraction and investment placement. The study is based on the aspects of investment processes becomes of paramount author’s database “Investment projects of the Stavropol Krai”, compiled based on data from official websites of the local importance. regional authorities. The analysis of the location of investment The aim of the article is to identify the territorial features projects is based on comparison of their geography and of the investment activity and to reveal the specifics of the industrial affiliation with the territorial and sectoral structure of the economy existing in the region. The study shows that at the effect that intra-regional factors have on attraction and intraregional level, there is a link between the territorial and investment in the post-Soviet period, base on the example of sectoral structure of investments, the horizon of their planning, the Stavropol Krai. the total amount of funds and the likelihood of implementing The work relies on classical theories of a territorial investment projects and their placement in the local system. In the Stavropol Krai, investments typically tend to locate around organization of society, as well as studies of investment the major transport routes, sales markets and the major elements features and regional development (V.L. Baburin [1], P.Ya. of the local economy; their industry affiliation corresponds to the Baklanov [2], M.D. Goryachko [3, 4], A. Kuznetsov [5], P. specialization of the industrial center or lies at the junction of Krugman [6], P.M. Polyan [7], M.E. Porter [8], A. related industries. When planning the placement of investment Shakhnazarov [9] and others). projects, the demographic features of the territory are not taken into account, which contributes to the strengthening of labor The database for the research comes from official data, migration processes and violates the demographic stability of the provided by the Regional Committee for Public Statistics; area. materials from the Agency for Strategic Initiatives; data of the Keywords – investment, geography of investment, territorial relevant ministries and departments of the Stavropol Krai; the structure of investments, Stavropol Krai, regional economy database “Investment projects of the Stavropol Krai”, developed by the authors on the basis of information taken from official websites of the regional public authorities. I. INTRODUCTION In a market economy, investments not only become a key II. EXPERIENCE OF STUDYING INVESTMENT PROCESSES IN factor in the success of the local development, but also turn GEOGRAPHY into an important tool for managing it. Investments are relevant to the most diverse spheres of society and reveal The study of the territorial and spatial structure of specific features of placement and development. Investments, investments in geographic science comes both as full-scale while playing an essential role in the functioning and studies and as a part of works on Economics & Geography. Recognizing the importance and significance of investments in Copyright © 2017, the Authors. Published by Atlantis Press. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/). 337 Advances in Economics, Business and Management Research, volume 38 the region’s economy, geographers have adopted the term integral coefficients development, classification and “investment-geographic position”, used to denote a component typologies, systemic, cause-and-effect and rating analysis, of the economic and geographical situation, which refers to the historical and geographical methods. Geographers have made position of the region in relation to large industrial and it traditional to compile integral ratings of investment financial centers that can become sources of direct and real development (investment attractiveness) of regions with the investment. They also proposed a methodology for accounting identification of a certain “investment landscape” of the for such situation of a territory when it is possible to forecast country [21]. Some unique methods for categorizing regions the volume and quality of investment, based on the method of by types of investment activity have also been developed [10, energy-production cycles. The theory of investment activity of 27]. the territory is also formulated, which implies the presence of the following parts in the territorial system: investment foci, III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION nuclei, centers and belts [10]. The Stavropol Krai is a region in the South of the Geographical study of investment processes includes European part of Russia. It is located between the highland analysis and evaluation of parameters for investment republics and flat, mainly Russian-speaking regions. The development [11, 12], such as investment climate [13, 14], Stavropol Krai features the agrarian-industrial orientation of potential and risk, as well as the spatial [15, 16, 17] and its economy. The main branches of the economy include food sectoral [18] structure of national and foreign investments at and chemical industry, electric power industry, agriculture, various territorial levels, as well as identifying factors that construction, trade and catering, tourism and recreation [28]. affect investment processes [19]. As a rule, geographic studies Industrial production is spread across the cities of the region, attempt to determine the role and place of investment in the while the major concentration can be found in its western and regional development, the degree of their influence on the southern parts, where the largest urban areas are located and socio-economic processes of the territory [20, 21], as well as the transport infrastructure is well developed. Despite the fact the search for mechanisms for managing the investment that the region ranks 4th in the quality of agricultural land in process. Russia, it has a significant differentiation of its territory in The key problem, which is relevant for geographers, terms of the agricultural usability degree – from the most studying the economic category of investment, is the favorable lands in the south-western part of the region to following contradiction: the main goal of capital investments risky-for-farming areas in the eastern part. The southern part in the economy of a territory is to generate profit, while the of the region has unique tourist and recreational resources. The main objective for the territory is sustainable development structure of the economy here is based on the radial-ring leading to an increase in the population’s well-being structure, formed by an industrial hub in the west, a group of accompanied by preserving the environment, which may be industrial centers and transport routes of various significance. violated through promotion of investment processes. Thus, in Support in the periphery of the region is due to industrial a broad sense, the main task for geographers is to study the areas, which are also located on federal and regional methods for coordinating the goals of the “agents of highways. production” and the territorial social systems [10]. This study, based on a dynamics analysis of the investment In terms of territorial coverage, studies that cover the entire process in the regions, showed that the Stavropol Krai is the country [14, 18] or a region [12, 21; 22; 23] prevail. The study type of “stable middle”: its position in terms of investment in of investment cooperation between states and regions is fixed assets, as well as per capita investment in 1990-2012 particularly common. At the same time, very few works have remained basically unchanged. [27] been carried out at the intra-regional level (except for Western The structure of investments in the fixed capital of the Siberia with its areas rich in oil and gas, and the industrially Stavropol Krai for the period of 2006-2012 has undergone developed region along the Volga River). Studies focusing on significant transformation: the funding for the transport and local issues are extremely rare [24]. Point analysis of communication sphere has been cut by half, and almost investment processes is typically associated with the completely in real estate.