Construction and Verification of a Scoring System for Chinese Export-Oriented Households/SMEs' Overseas Investment Decisions in Southeast Asian Countries

This study addresses the decision-making needs of Chinese export-oriented households and SMEs in their overseas expansion in Southeast Asia. A scoring system was constructed and verified through research. First, based on authoritative data sources such as the World Bank, the WGI (Global Governance Indicator), and the Doing Business Index, key dimensions such as political stability, production costs, and tariffs (for exports to Europe and the US) were selected to quantitatively assess and compare the scores of key Southeast Asian countries undergoing industrial relocation. Second, in-depth interviews were conducted with entrepreneurs with actual overseas export experience to cross-validate the effectiveness of the scoring system and analyze the consistency and differences between the actual decision-making focus of enterprises and the model indicators. The research results will help reveal the factors most valued by Chinese SMEs when choosing overseas locations and their degree of matching with the objective indicator system, thus providing quantitative support for enterprises to formulate overseas investment strategies.