PBESProceedings of Business and Economic Studies2209-26412209-265XBio-Byword Scientific Publishing Pty. Ltd.10.26689/pbes.v8i4.11890ArticleInvestment Risk Assessment of Sporting Goods Manufacturing Enterprises in Countries Along the Belt and Road Initiativehttps://artdesignp.com/journal/PBES/8/4/10.26689/pbes.v8i4.11890LiDeqiang,HuangZie2025842025-09-09With the continuous promotion of the Belt and Road initiative, the sporting goods manufacturing industry, as a key sector of Chinese enterprises’ “going global” strategy, is actively expanding the markets of countries along the Belt and Road. However, there are significant differences in political, economic, and social environments among countries along the Belt and Road, which bring considerable uncertainties to the transnational investment of enterprises. Based on the investment environment of 70 countries along the Belt and Road, this paper constructs a risk evaluation index system including five dimensions: political and legal, economic and financial, socio-cultural, investment environment, and bilateral relations. The Criteria Importance Through Intercriteria Correlation (CRITIC) method is used to determine weight, Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) method is employed to evaluate the investment risks of each country. Furthermore, cluster analysis is used to classify the countries into low, medium, and high-risk levels. Finally, policy recommendations are proposed based on the characteristics of countries with different risk levels, providing decision-making references for sporting goods manufacturing enterprises in selecting suitable countries for investment, enhancing risk prevention capabilities, and improving investment success rates.

Huang Y, 2016, Understanding China’s Belt & Road Initiative: Motivation, Framework and Assessment. China Economic Review, 40: 314–321.

Dunford M, 2021, China’s Belt and Road Initiative and Its Implications for Global Development. Acta Via Serica, 6(1): 91–118.

Duan F, Ji Q, Liu BY, et al., 2018, Energy Investment Risk Assessment for Nations along China’s Belt & Road Initiative. Journal of Cleaner Production, 170: 535–547.

Yuan J, Zeng Y, Guo X, et al., 2018, Electric Power Investment Risk Assessment for Belt and Road Initiative Nations. Sustainability, 10(9): 3119.

Andrić JM, Wang J, Zou PXW, et al., 2019, Fuzzy Logic–Based Method for Risk Assessment of Belt and Road Infrastructure Projects. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 145(12): 04019082.

Xiang Y, Zhang Q, Wang D, et al., 2022, Mining Investment Risk Assessment for Nations along the Belt and Road Initiative. Land, 11(8): 1287.

Yang F, Gan Q, Guo L, 2023, Political Risks to China’s Energy Infrastructure Investment in Countries along the Belt and Road. Energies, 16(18): 6461.

Tang BJ, Ji CJ, Zheng YX, et al., 2024, Risk Assessment of Oil and Gas Investment Environment in Countries along the Belt and Road Initiative. Petroleum Science, 21(2): 1429–1443.

Nikjow MA, Liang L, Xijing Q, et al., 2022, Risk Analysis of Belt and Road Infrastructure Projects Using Integrated ISM-MICMAC Approach. Journal of Modelling in Management, 17(4): 1410–1431.

Jiang ZL, Jiang ML, 2022, Research on the Sustainability of China’s Overseas Investment under the “Belt and Road” Initiative. On Economic Problems, (7): 35–43.

Li T, Tang JQ, 2022, Research on the Influence of Financial Risks in the Countries Along the Belt and Road on China’s OFDI. International Economics and Trade Research, 38(03): 36–50.

Guo M, 2023, Research on Tax Risks of Enterprises’ Overseas Investment under the New Situation of the Belt and Road Initiative. Communication of Finance and Accounting, (16): 131–136.

Xiang PC, Liu SJ, Duan X, 2025, Research on Comprehensive Evaluation of Railway Investment Risk in Countries Along “the Belt and Road.” Journal of Industrial Technology and Economy, 44(02): 139–149.

Hou J, Li G, Ling J, et al., 2023, Mineral Investment Risk Assessment of Host Countries Based on a Cloud Matter-Element Model. Gospodarka Surowcami Mineralnymi, 39.

Zhang M, Pang Z, Liu L, et al., 2024, Risk Assessment of China’s Overseas Energy Investments Considering the Response Ability to Major Risk Events: A Case Study of COVID-19. Energy, 288: 129783.

Jiang J, Ao L, 2023, Risk Evaluation and Prevention of China’s Investment in Countries along the Belt and Road. Journal of Intelligent & Fuzzy Systems, 44(2): 1645–1659.

Li B, 2022, Risk Assessment of OFDI for Technology‐Based Enterprises under the Background of “One Belt One Road.” Discrete Dynamics in Nature and Society, 2022(1): 6113930.

Wu Y, Wang J, Ji S, et al., 2020, Renewable Energy Investment Risk Assessment for Nations along China’s Belt & Road Initiative: An ANP-Cloud Model Method. Energy, 190: 116381.

Diakoulaki D, Mavrotas G, Papayannakis L, 1995, Determining Objective Weights in Multiple Criteria Problems: The Critic Method. Computers & Operations Research, 22(7): 763–770.

Hwang CL, Yoon K, 1981, Methods for Multiple Attribute Decision Making. Multiple Attribute Decision Making: Methods and Applications a State-of-the-Art Survey, 1981: 58–191.