Direction of outward FDI of EMNEs: Evidence from the Indian pharmaceutical sector

This article seeks to add to the small but growing literature of emerging‐market multinational enterprises (EMNEs). Using two linked large firm‐level databases, it seeks to explore the determinants of outward investment of Indian pharmaceutical companies, distinguishing between developed‐ versus developing‐country destinations. It specifically examines the impact of two firm‐level characteristics that embody “non‐OLI” [ownership, location, and internalization] firm‐specific capabilities of EMNEs. The finding of this study is that family firms are keen on investing in other developing countries but much less so in developed countries. However, international linkages in the form of foreign investors offset this. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The relationship between CSR and corporate strategy in medium‐sized companies: evidence from Italy

The paper responds to the recent calls for further evidence on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). Drawing on the extant literature, the authors identify four characteristics contended by academicians as peculiarities of SMEs’ approach to CSR: the intrinsic relationship between CSR and corporate strategy motivated by the need to continuously dialogue with stakeholders; the centrality of the entrepreneur's ethos in CSR decisions; the coexistence and the cross‐effect of economically instrumental and ethically motivated CSR policies; and the finalization of CSR initiatives to specific firm growth objectives. These four peculiarities are explored in the case of an Italian medium‐sized company operating in the furniture industry. The outcomes show how the four peculiarities are salient in analyzing the CSR approach by the company and suggest areas for further research aimed at developing a thorough theory of CSR in SMEs. In particular, we deepen the analysis of the nature of the uniqueness of medium‐sized companies’ approach to CSR, providing possible interpretations of the reasons making medium‐sized companies’ approach to CSR different from both small and large companies.     

Trust in Companies and in CEOs: A Comparative Study of the Main Influences

Trust is a crucial factor for the long-term economic success of a company. However, not only does the company establish trust, but the CEO representing the company builds up trust as well and, therefore, also influences the company’s success. Our study examines how different dimensions of trust (i.e., ability, integrity, benevolence, and information quality) influence the degree of overall trust in a company and in CEOs. Nevertheless, dimensions that influence trust in a CEO can be completely different to those influencing trust in companies. Companies and CEOs that act on an international level can hardly be experienced individually, and thus people get information about the company via media use. Therefore, additionally we examine which kind of media is used for getting information about a company or CEO and whether a relationship exists between media use and trust. Findings from a survey in Switzerland (n = 245) show that companies are more trusted than CEOs and that the items which influence overall trust differ between CEOs and companies. Social responsibility as a benevolence item is important for both groups. Regarding information on different media channels, users of traditional media like newspapers, TV, and radio are most critical regarding trust in companies and CEOs.     

Which Dimension of Corporate Social Responsibility is a Value Driver in the Oil and Gas Industry?

The oil and gas (O&G) industry suffers from a negative perception of poor sustainability. O&G companies are therefore engaged in several socially sustainable activities related to community development and environmental protection. This article determines whether the social, environmental, and economic dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) are equally value‐additive to O&G companies. We measure the company‐specific level of CSR activities from the information provided in the annual financial reports of O&G companies and determine the effects of CSR dimensions on firm value. We find that CSR enhances firm value of O&G companies. While social activities such as employee well‐being and community development are key value‐drivers, environmental and economic sustainable activities have an insignificant impact on the market value of O&G companies. Copyright © 2018 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd     

Horizontal and Vertical Intra‐industry Trade: An Empirical Test of the ‘Homogeneity Hypothesis’

In this paper, we study if and how country‐specific factors affect intra‐industry trade (IIT) when heterogeneity among sectors is allowed for. The paper is novel in that it is the first that addresses an issue raised by Greenaway et al. (Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, 1999, 61, 365). Specifically, employing data on a sample of OECD countries over a 10‐year period (1997–1998), we build on and take forward a methodology pioneered by Balassa and Bauwens (Economic Journal, 1987, 97, 923) to study the determinants of horizontal and vertical IIT using a multi‐industry approach. In doing this, we seek to avoid the more extreme measurement problems by allowing for heterogeneity among sectors when country‐specific factors are analysed and among countries when industry‐specific factors are considered. The results are compared to those obtained using the traditional method that does not consider intersectoral heterogeneity. We find that the two models yield statistically different results. Moreover, the tests regarding the choice of model – that is, econometric tests designed to compare one model with another when different sets of explanatory variables are used – confirm the relevance of intersectoral heterogeneity in affecting IIT. To the best of our knowledge, a similar analysis has not yet appeared in the empirical literature on IIT.     

Foreign company misconduct and how consumers’ punitive intent is influenced by country stereotypes and the perceived similarity between the foreign country and the home country

Using a previously untested similarity contingency model of country stereotypes, this study assesses the effects of country stereotypes, perceived country similarity, and their interplay on emotion-driven punitive intent toward foreign, wrongdoing companies. In Study 1, positive country stereotypes (warmth, competence) mitigate punitive intent by diminishing agonistic emotions (contempt, anger, and disgust). Study 2 demonstrates that perceived similarity with a wrongdoing company’s country of origin moderates the indirect effects of country stereotypes on emotion-driven punitive intent. Compensatory effects between country stereotypes and perceived country similarity emerge; with greater (lower) perceived country similarity, the indirect effects of country stereotypes on emotion-driven punitive intent are weaker (stronger). The results provide companies with relevant insights into (1) why consumers emotionally react as they do to wrongdoing companies of different nationalities and (2) how to counterbalance negative effects of company misconduct by harmonizing elements of countries’ warmth, competence, and perceived country similarity in branding and communication content.     

Drivers of training participation in low skilled jobs: the role of ‘voice’, technology,innovation and labor shortages in German companies

This article investigates the role of ‘voice’, technology, innovation (of products, services, or processes) and labor shortages in the training participation of low skilled workers in German companies. By building on the key findings of previous research, hypotheses on drivers of training participation are derived from filter theory and the concept of social embeddedness. Regression and cluster analysis based on the German IAB Establishment Panel (wave 2011) show evidence that training participation is shaped by ‘voice’‐related institutional company characteristics such as employee representation or formalized HR practices. Both characteristics often cluster together. Regression analyses confirm that companies in this cluster train a higher share of their low‐skilled workforce. The share is particularly high when companies in this cluster face labor shortages. Apart from that, advanced technology and recent innovations at the company level are not related to higher rates of training participation among low skilled workers.     

What Determines Export Diversification in the Development Process? Empirical Assessment

This paper assesses the role played by country‐specific factors as determinants of relative export diversification. Using a panel data set for 60 countries and 20 years (1985–2004), we confirm that even after clearing out differences in income per capita, cross‐country variability in the degree of export diversification is significant. In general, apart from per capita income, features influencing the size of accessible markets (domestic and foreign) are the most relevant and robust determinants of the export diversification process. Diversification opportunities grow if countries are large and not located far from economic core areas and when barriers to trade are restricted.     

Multinational corporate website strategies and influencing factors: A comparison of US and Korean corporate websites

This study, using a content analysis method, explored whether and to what extent multinational corporate websites targeting different markets are standardized. It also tested three organizational factors – country of origin, company size, and product type – for their potential influence on the level of corporate website standardization. A sample of 52 top US-based multinational companies and 52 Korea-based multinational companies was drawn and a total of 104 pairs of websites for these companies were content-analyzed. Overall, the degree of website standardization was not significantly different between companies based in the two countries. The results suggest that both US and Korean multinational corporations tend to maintain their websites in a similar way when targeting the home and foreign markets. Among the three organizational factors, only product type – B2B versus B2C products and durables versus non-durables – was found to be significantly associated with the level of website standardization. This study makes important contributions to the research literature by offering new information on the current state of multinational corporate website strategies and advancing our knowledge about international marketing communications on the Internet and influencing factors.     

Where Do Firms Export,How Much and Why?

The empirical finding that exporting firms are more productive on average than non‐exporters has provoked a large theoretical literature based on models such as Melitz ( 2003 ), where more productive firms are more likely to overcome costs associated with trade. This paper investigates how closely the productivity heterogeneity framework fits the data from a firm‐level survey that includes information on export destinations and firm characteristics such as productivity. We find a high degree of unpredictable idiosyncratic participation in export markets by firms and a relatively weak positive correlation between the extent of a firm's export market participation and its export sales. We find that a small number of standard gravity variables provide a close fit to the country‐level determinants of trade but that greater variation results in more difficulty in explaining firm‐specific factors driving exporting behaviour. We also illustrate some elements of the dynamics over time in firm exporting patterns by destination. We show that lagged exporting activity has a significant effect on a firm's current exporting profile.     

Offshoring and Outsourcing Potentials: Evidence from German Micro‐Level Data

This paper provides two indicators that measure: (i) offshoring potentials (cross‐country geographical relocation) and (ii) outsourcing potentials (organisational relocation) separately at the level of jobs, occupations, tasks and industries. We use four waves of the BIBB/BAuA Labour Force Survey in Germany and apply principal component analysis based on a large set of potential determinants of offshoring and outsourcing derived from the literature. Our results show significant variation across these levels in the determinants of both dimensions. We provide a comprehensive empirical classification of the determinants of how easily jobs can be offshored and outsourced. This can serve as a basis for further research to investigate the economic effects of job offshoreability.     

Trade credit and determinants of profitability in Europe. The case of the agri-food industry

The objective of this paper is to analyse the effect that trade credit has on the determinants of profitability during the crisis period in Europe. We use panel data for a total of 24,177 European agri-food companies from 2010 to 2014. Among our main contributions, we highlight that we isolate the sector effect and study the country effect by separating the different policies and customs with respect to the granting of trade credit. The results confirm, in general, that trade credit affects profitability depending on the country and the characteristics of size, specificity, market power or reputation.     

Determinants of entry strategies of U.S. companies into Russia,the Czech Republic,Hungary, Poland,and Romania

Executive Summary This study advances and tests determinants of entry strategies of U.S. companies to Eastern Europe, as well as factors that determine the satisfaction of these companies with their economic performance in this area. Using survey data and a multivariable research design, the study adds new knowledge and supports previous findings. It reports that the entry mode of U.S. companies into these countries is determined by the following variables, ranked from most to least important: market potential, company activity, level of competition, and year of market entry. It also reports that the satis‐faction of U.S. companies doing business in these countries is decided by the following variables, ranked from most to least important: economic‐performance outlook, level of competition, number of competitors, market potential, year of entry, and business activity. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Key service innovation drivers in the tourism sector: empirical evidence and managerial implications

This study highlights the importance of market orientation and the use of information and communication technologies (ICT) as determinants of service innovation activity for companies in the tourism sector. In doing so, the study provides a means to classify companies as innovative or not. Using a sample of 100 Spanish firms from different branches of the tourism sector, we confirm and extend prior research. In particular, market orientation??especially a customer orientation??is critical for developing new services that lead to competitive advantages. In addition, ICT have a dual, direct, and indirect influence on service innovation.     

Disclosure of Corporate Environmental Policies in Annual Reports: Further Evidence Incorporating a National Ideology–An Australian Study

ABSTRACT

During the last decade, there has been a growing awareness at a community level and, more recently, at a business level of a changing emphasis on the disclosure of environmental performance by Australian public companies. Over the last few years, many studies have been undertaken which have examined the disclosure of environmental information by analyzing public company Annual Reports in Australia. Previously, public companies preferred to prepare Corporate Environmental Policy (CEP) statements for internal use only rather than for external reporting (Tilt, 1997, 2001). However, now these reports appear in the annual reports of Australian public companies. Using content analysis, this study examines a sample of public companies listed on the ASX (Australian Stock Exchange) in 2000 and the reporting nexus between these companies' CEPs and their Annual Reports. The results show that environmentally sensitive companies are disclosing more environmental information than other companies. Emerging from these results, our study shows that companies involved in the survey adopted some disclosure on environmental issues based on the ideological belief in such environmental issues. There are currently only limited requirements for any formal identification or reporting with regard to environmental assets, liabilities or contingencies in Australia. Our research has shown that environmentally sensitive companies provided a significantly greater amount of voluntary positive environmental disclosures than the non-sensitive companies. Based on the results of our research it is fair to say that there is an ideological belief within the Australian public companies and the Accounting profession on environmental reporting issues.     

Cross-border private equity syndication: Institutional context and learning

Private equity (PE) has become an increasingly international phenomenon but there is a lack of research that looks at the process by which PE firms invest across borders. We aim to fill this gap in the literature by examining the role of institutional context and organizational learning as determinants of cross-border PE syndication. We examine these issues by studying the international expansion by later-stage UK PE investors into continental Europe over the period 1990 to 2006. Our results indicate that institutional context (in terms of the number of PE firms in the local environment and the presence of investment bankers in the local market) and organizational learning (in terms of the PE firm's experience in the host country; the PE firm's multinational experience; and the number of investment managers per portfolio company; but not the presence of local offices) are significantly related to the use of cross-border syndicates. Implications for theory and practice are suggested.     

Determinants of Bilateral Trade Protection

In this paper, determinants of bilateral protection levels are empirically identified when controlling for multilateral trade regulation and importing‐country‐specific factors. Strong empirical support is provided of that three bilateral factors are influencing the bilateral protection level. Specifically, a country's protection level on goods from a trade partner is positively affected by the domestic import penetration of goods produced by the trade partner, negatively influenced by the intra‐industry traded share of these imports and positively affected by the trade partner's protection level on domestic goods. Moreover, very high explanatory values are provided in the cross‐section estimations, indicating that these determinants, policy regulations and importer‐specific factors jointly explain almost all of the variation in bilateral protection levels. The results are general in the sense that estimations are performed for a large sample of bilateral trade relations including 22 trade partners that are highly differentiated in terms of country characteristics. The overall results indicate that, to the extent that policy makers can affect bilateral protection levels under multilateral trade regulation, they act on political‐economy rather than economic goals.     

中国上市公司年报重述影响因素的实证研究

文章以2003-2006年5000多家上市公司为样本,较为系统地剖析了中国上市公司年报重述的影响因素.实证结果表明,公司特征、股权结构和外部治理环境是目前影响我国上市公司年报重述的主要因素,而内部治理结构对年报重述的约束和影响力较小.进一步地,文章构建了一个财务报告重述、信息披露与投资者保护的扩展分析框架,对加强财务报告重述监管、引导和规范上市公司信息披露行为提出了相应的政策建议.     

Magic mirror in my hand … How trade mirror statistics can help us detect illegal financial flows

Misreporting tricks of different sorts applied to the transfer of goods between different countries are typically exploited by criminals worldwide for money laundering ends. The main international anti‐money laundering organisations started paying attention to this phenomenon, dubbed “trade‐based money laundering” (TBML), a long time ago, but the failure to develop appropriate analytical tools has reportedly dogged preventive actions. Nonetheless, literature has widely advocated the possibility that the analysis of inconsistencies in mirrored bilateral trade data could provide some help. By building on previous contributions in the field, this work sets up a model factoring in the main structural determinants of discrepancies between mirrored data concerning Italy's 2010 to 2013 external trade at a highly detailed (6‐digit) level of goods classification for each partner country. Point estimates of freight costs are used to net each observation of the corresponding cif/fob discrepancy. The regression estimates are then deployed in order to compute TBML risk indicators at a country/4‐digit product level. Based on the indicators, rankings of countries and product lines can be compiled, which may be used for a risk‐driven search of potential illegal commercial transactions.