The importance of Foreign Direct Investments in Developed Countries is being eroded in favor of Developing Countries. Against this background, the aim of this paper is to determine the existence of firms' characteristics that have an impact on the decision concerning the location of foreign investments. The main results show that those Spanish firms in the sample with a higher degree of international diversification, a greater availability of intangible resources, and a larger size with respect to the firms of the same sector, tend locate their investments in Developing Countries. By contrast, we have observed that a previous presence in the host country has a greater impact when the firm invests in a Developed Country.

Key words: foreign direct investments, developed countries/developing countries, spanish firms, characteristics (sixze, labor/capital, intangible resources, internationalization).
JEL classification: F23.