Supply chain disruption management: Global convergence vs national specificity

As the supply chain expands overseas, there is a growing need for managing supply chain disruptions from a cross-national perspective. This paper investigates whether or not supply chain disruption management (SCDM) can be universally applied. The universality of the SCDM framework is analyzed through the convergent versus divergent (national specificity) debate. On an empirical level, based on a unique sample of 1403 firms representing 69 countries all over the world and using the GLOBE framework, we compare the level of importance of the eight constructs of our framework and the patterns of relationship between the constructs, across eight country clusters. MANOVA analysis and multiple regression analysis were applied to obtain relevant empirical insights. Surprisingly, our findings suggest that while risk sources are different in the various countries, the implementation of SCDM practices is universal. These results support the existing tension between the convergence theory and the national specificity argument.     

Cross-border mergers and market concentration in a vertically related industry: theory and evidence

We present a tractable model of oligopoly to identify the linkages between local competition and cross-border mergers in a vertically related industry. We show that the incentives for cross-border mergers rise with vertical integration in an industry when the premerger concentration in that industry is sufficiently high relative to the concentration in the same industry in a foreign country. We also show that the incentives for a merger between a foreign firm and a vertically integrated home firm will be higher than that for a merger between a foreign firm and a disintegrated home firm, when the premerger concentration at home is low relative to the premerger concentration in the foreign country. We then analyze a firm-level panel of 90,614 M&A observations, between 1990 and 2012, from 86 countries. Logistic regressions confirm that market concentration is an important determinant of cross-border M&A. Our results support the conjectures of our theoretical model and are consistent with recent empirical findings and theoretical predictions.     

Food Retailing and Supply Chain Linkages in the Russian Federation

Abstract

This paper focuses on the evolution of Russian food retailing and linkages between and among firms in the food supply chain. Intermediation theory is used to develop a conceptual framework. Intermediaries have played an important role throughout the Russian food supply chain fulfilling the function of matching sellers and buyers. Tighter vertical linkages between firms in the Russian food industry are becoming more prevalent, and the roles of intermediaries may be performed by agents acting on behalf of a vertically integrated principal. The food retailing sector in the Russian Federation is evolving to be a source of information from the consumer to upstream firms.     

Economies as an Antitrust Defense Revisited: The Welfare Trade-offs and Safe Harbors

This paper incorporates a Cournot model of oligopoly pricing into Williamson’s (1968a) model to assess the welfare effect of a merger that yields economies and market power simultaneously. The results show: (i) in most cases, economies from mergers can offset price increases due to market power such that there are positive net allocative effects, and (ii) the safe harbors in the merger guidelines may fail to screen out mergers correctly. The reliability, however, can be improved by considering cost savings and price elasticities in addition to the current use of increases in HHI and post-merger HHIs.     

Shopping in the omnichannel supply chain under price competition and product return

In recent years, omnichannel retailing has created value for prospective consumers. The rise of omnichannel retailing has changed consumers' buying habits, and manufacturers are facing stiff competition from retailers. To reduce this competition effect, manufacturers and retailers often work together to reduce showroom display costs. Despite this practice, there is little understanding of how omnichannel retailing impacts supply chain (SC) profit under competitive conditions. We investigate the test-in-store-and-buy-online (TSBO) retailing strategy and its impact on SC profit and price competition between manufacturers. The retailer sells products of both manufacturers through its website but displays products of only one manufacturer in the showroom, which bears the displaying cost. The retailer adopts a return policy for the other manufacturer. Stackelberg game was used to examine how members of the chain interact, and Nash equilibrium was used to find optimal strategies for players under decentralized and integrated channels. The results show that the TSBO strategy in retailing benefits all supply chain players under the integrated channel. A further interesting finding is that omnichannel SC profits are highest when retailers adopt a return policy. When two manufacturers compete and adopt different sales models, the manufacturer who uses the TSBO retail model reaps the most profit. Several other managerial insights are drawn from sensitivity analyses.     

What Do We Know about Success and Failure of Mergers?—Rejoinder

Responding to the comments of Coscelli, Lyons and Weston, I argue: (1) The aim of my paper was not primarily to discuss recent competition policy, but to extract stylized facts and compare them to theory; (2) utilizing all empirical merger studies published in refereed journals, instead of only the sound ones, does not appear to influence the results; (3) economies to scale—and consequently endogenous merger motives—are of less importance for mergers dealt with by the competition authorities; (4) a post-merger number of competitors of less than four to five steeply raises the likelihood of tacit collusion and conscious parallelism; (5) concentration is already high and still increasing in quite a number of markets; (6) mergers in network sectors are more dangerous than in manufacturing, as the number of potential competitors is small in most cases; (7) I agree with my critics that strictly banning the critical categories of mergers may be too harsh; I still hold, however, that competition authorities should take account of these critical types in a more formal way (e.g. by merger rules).     

外资并购对先进制造业基地建设的影响

全球化背景下,先进制造业基地的形成路径发生了改变。外资并购对东道国先进制造业基地的形成产生重要影响,它不仅能促进东道国产业成长、技术进步,而且有利于东道国产业集聚形成、生产规模扩大及出口数量增加;但同时也可能使外资企业的市场支配力加强、抑制本土企业的成长、危害东道国产业安全。我国应利用外资并购这种高层次利用国际资本形式,为打造先进制造业基地提供新的推动力。     

The impact of mergers in banking : Evidence from a nationwide sample of federally chartered banks

Spurred by deregulation, cost, and risk factors, commercial bank mergers have accelerated sharply in recent years. Many banks appear to be positioning themselves for the advent of interstate banking through holding company or reciprocal branching arrangements. Yet, the performance effects of mergers among operating U.S. banks (as opposed to holding company acquisitions) have been examined both infrequently and inconclusively. This study focuses upon the characteristics and performance effects of national bank mergers occurring during the 1970–1980 period. Acquiring national banks were found to have lower operating efficiency and productivity than nonmerging banks and their profitability did not increase following the mergers, but credit availability, productivity, loan losses, deposit service charges, and interest-rate risk did rise. Frequency of merger activity did not significantly influence bank profitability or growth, but did augment stockholder risks and increase business and real-estate credit. In the aggregate, national bank mergers appeared to result neither in significant service benefits nor in significant service costs to the public.Spurred by deregulation of the industry, rising cost pressures, and increased operating risk, merger transactions among U.S. banks have soared in recent years. During the 1982–1986 period, for example, banking led all other industries in the number of consummated mergers and consistently was among the ten leading U.S. industries in the estimated market value of merger agreements. Moreover, the recent upsurge in reciprocal interstate banking agreements and proposals for fully legalized interstate banking hold out the prospect for a further acceleration in bank merger transactions in the years ahead. In view of the fact that legislation in more than 30 states now permits some form of interstate banking by merger or de novo entry and a June 1985 ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court has legitimized regional banking compacts, the public and private impact of bank mergers becomes of much greater importance as a research focus.Despite the magnitude of recent bank merger transactions and their implications for the public, the research literature in this area is surprisingly meager and often contradictory. This article is an attempt to focus more sharply on recent research findings, provide additional evidence concerning the effects of mergers on the financial performance of banks, and assess their impact on the public's interest in an adequate supply of financial services.     

Why Country of Origin Still Matters in Food Retailing: Implications for Promotion Management Research

ABSTRACT

Despite considerable focus on the role of country image (CI) and country of origin (COO) in international marketing and consumer behavior research over the past fifty years, several meta-analyses suggest that knowledge of the impact on consumer decision-making is limited. Even though they are among the most commonly traded items, food products (have not received as much attention from researchers as other product categories (i.e. consumer electronics, cars, apparel and footwear). Further, most of the research that focuses on food was conducted prior to the introduction of mandatory labelling requirements in many major retail markets. This critical review contributes to the literature examining the role that this information plays in food retailing within the context of international trade in food. From this critical review, a research agenda is developed, highlighting several major avenues and methodological approaches with the aim of enhancing the relevance and validity of COO research in food retailing and promotion management.     

International Comparisons of Supply Chain Management in Grocery Retailing

This paper discusses a neglected area of international retailing research, namely an international comparison of supply chain management practices. The focus of this research is on the grocery industry sector and the comparative analysis is between US retailers and their counterparts in parts of Europe. The research shows that the logistical environment differs markedly between and even within countries. The amount of stock held in the grocery supply chain varies from over 100 days in the US to 29 days in the UK. The main reasons for these differences can be attributed to the intensity of price competition, conflict rather than collaboration between suppliers and retailers, commodity purchasing and holding of promotional stock and the varying rates of adoption of information technology, especially EDI usage. No two countries are the same, however; and range of factors such as geography and distribution ‘culture’ will require the international rnarketeer to assess all these factors in developing a logistics strategy for different country markets.     

Are Bank Mergers Good News for Shareholders? The Effect of Bank Mergers on Shareholder Value in Japan

This study investigates the effects of bank mergers on the welfare of affiliated client firms. The findings demonstrate that, in general, bank mergers increase the welfare of client firms. However, there are significant differences in the impact of a bank merger on client firms across different merger, bank, and firm characteristics. Client firms of banks involved in mega‐mergers do not enjoy an increase in welfare. Client firms of undercapitalized banks in fact suffer significant welfare losses. In the long‐run, weak “zombie” firms also in many cases experience welfare losses following the announcement of a merger by their main bank.     

Cross‐Border Mergers and Differences in Corporate Governance

We examine whether corporate governance differences affect firm valuation in cross‐border mergers. We find that takeover premiums are decreasing in the quality of the foreign acquirer's home country governance for deals completed with stock, suggesting that the acquirers compensate target shareholders for the resulting exposure to inferior corporate governance regimes. Correspondingly, we find that the acquiring firm stockholders' abnormal returns at the merger announcement are increasing in the quality of corporate governance for stock offers. Finally, we find that foreign acquirers from countries with better corporate governance are more likely to make stock offers.     

全球价值链重构的经济效应--兼论中美经贸摩擦的影响

2017年,中美关系发生了实质性变化,美国对华战略从合作走向竞争。新冠肺炎疫情下,中美关系更是面临新的不确定性,中美经贸摩擦将影响中美两国的经济,进而产生连锁反应,造成全球价值链的重构。利用2014年世界投入产出数据库(WIOD)和假设提取法,测算中美经贸摩擦和全球价值链重构对世界43个国家或地区的经济影响,并重点模拟中美之间贸易由国内供给替代对增加值和劳动力就业的最大影响。结果表明:第一,基准模型设定下,经济效应存在地区异质性,中国周边地区、美国周边北美自由贸易区受到的影响最大,反映了区域性生产网络的存在。第二,相对美国,中国受影响更大,增加值下降2.5%以上;其余受影响较大的国家有爱尔兰、卢森堡、荷兰;印度和欧洲大部分地区受影响较小。第三,中美经贸摩擦对每个行业的影响不同,受影响最大的行业为中国的家具制造业和其他制造业,计算机、电子和光学产品制造业,以及美国的航空运输业。第四,假设其余国家或地区卷入中美经贸摩擦,存在替代效应和全球价值链重构,部分国家或地区增加值和劳动力就业均上升,上升最多的为22.42%。建议深化实施"一带一路"倡议,主动与周边国家或地区开展经济合作,强化区域价值链的影响,同时积极培育和发展国内产业链。     

Consequences of Riding Takeover Waves: Australian Evidence

This paper uses Australian data to analyze takeover bid premiums and long‐term abnormal returns for mergers that occur during wave and non‐wave periods. Findings reveal that bid premiums are slightly lower in wave periods, and bidding firms earn normal post‐takeover returns (relative to a portfolio of firms matched on size and survival) if their bids were made in non‐wave periods. However, bidders who announced their takeover bids during wave periods exhibit significant underperformance. For mergers that took place within waves, there is no difference in bid premiums nor is there a difference in the long‐run returns of bidders involved during the first half and second half of the waves. We find that none of prominent theories of merger waves (managerial, misvaluation, and neoclassical) can fully account for Australian takeover waves and their effects. Instead, our results suggest that Banal‐Estanol et al.'s screening theory of merger activity, by combining the misvaluation and neoclassical theories, may provide a better explanation.     

The determinants and evaluation of merger success

Many decry the preponderance of merger failures and conclude that mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are failed strategies. However, analysis of the causes of failure has often been shallow and the measures of success weak. The research reported here focuses on what makes a merger successful and what is the appropriate manner of evaluating merger success. Extensive field research of the merger of J.P. Morgan and Chase Manhattan Bank in 2000 is used to illustrate the drivers of merger success and how to improve and value the contributions of mergers.     

What Do We Know about Success and Failure of Mergers?

Collecting the most important results of about 80 empirical merger studies, this study condenses the bewildering spectrum of results to 18 stylized facts. Most important, no more than a quarter of the mergers increase consumer welfare; another quarter increase profits at the cost of consumers; half of the mergers reduce the value of the firm. Targets' shareholders win, while bidders' shareholders break even upon the announcement of a merger, but lose significantly in the long run. Seen relatively, horizontal mergers fare best, especially if they are focus-increasing. Cash-financed mergers fare better than stock-financed and strategic mergers fare better than financial ones. Confronting the stylized facts with existing merger theory reveals some major paradoxes; confronting them with existing competition policy reveals the need for a modification and intensification, as mergers increase concentration, and corporate policy strives towards still higher concentration. As a summary ten lessons are extracted on what we may have learnt, and on what is still open.     

Patterns of Corporate Ownership and Privatization in Visegrad Countries

ABSTRACT

The article analyzes merger and acquisition activities in Visegrad Countries (the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia). The analysis established linkages among the FDI, Privatization and M&A activities and reports the characteristics of transactions in the region in a comparative spirit. The findings indicate that majority of activities in the region involved foreign investors from Western Europe and USA. The M&A activities were concentrated in manufacturing segments such as automobiles, food processing, glass and clay, service segments such as telecom, utilities and financial services. The study also revealed some pre and post transaction ownership patterns in respective countries as well as methods of acquisition.     

Sequential Mergers and Antitrust Authority’s Decisions in Stackelberg Markets

This paper analyses a sequential merger formation game in a setting where: (i) firms compete à la Stackelberg; (ii) mergers may give rise to endogenous efficiency gains; and (iii) every merger has to be submitted for approval to the Antitrust Authority (AA). Two different types of AA are studied: first, we assume a myopic AA, which accepts or rejects a given merger without considering that this merger may be followed by other mergers; and, second, a forward looking AA, which anticipates the final industry structure a merger will give rise to, if approved. We conclude that these two types of AA adopt similar decisions whenever a merger would not trigger the exit of outsider firms. Their decisions are, however, shown to be very different when evaluating exit-inducing merger proposals.     

Effect of R&D and Market Concentration on Merger Outcomes – An Event Study of US Horizontal Mergers

This study examines the pattern of abnormal returns for merging companies and rivals, to determine investor expectations regarding the impact of horizontal mergers challenged by the government. Prior studies have indicated that the government may have challenged efficiency-enhancing mergers, as evidenced by the pattern of abnormal returns to rivals during merger events. This study uses a two-stage regression approach to examine those patterns, using challenged mergers from 1997 to 2007, and finds evidence of potential price effects from approved mergers. The results also show the mergers to have differential effects depending on the level of R&D, market concentration, and product sales.     

Barbarians at the Gates: State Control of Global Mergers and Acquisitions

Cross‐border mergers and acquisitions are a major and often politicised component of foreign direct investment. Using data on individual transactions between 1970 and 2006, we examine the restrictions countries place on mergers and acquisitions, whether they use these controls to discriminate against foreigners seeking to acquire domestic firms, and what factors may predict the propensity to block foreign entry by this method of direct investment. Drawing partly on the existing literature, we test hypotheses that state intervention can be explained by characteristics of the countries whose firms are targeted by acquirers, including per capita income, democracy, trade exposure, market size, government share of national income and industrial structure. Although democracy, trade exposure and high government expenditure are associated with more stringent merger control laws, none of these attributes cause states to discriminate against cross‐border mergers. Countries with high per capita incomes, large markets and strict merger control laws, do use those regulations to discourage foreign acquirers. A second set of tests, based on observations of individual deals, rather than national aggregates, reveal that governments are particularly averse to foreigners acquiring firms that are bankrupt or in the defence sector. Overall, governments do treat cross‐border mergers and acquisitions differently, and use their merger control laws to discriminate against foreign investors, particularly with respect to certain types of transactions.