Democracy and trade: an empirical study

The theoretical discussion on globalization has suggested that there are linkages between democracy and trade, although the direction of influence is less certain. Formal empirical studies remain scarce, and have often focused on the question of whether democratic regimes influence trade policy, as opposed to the actual relationship between democracy and trade. This paper seeks to answer the question, “Do democracies trade more?” by applying the gravity equation to a large dataset of bilateral trade data for the period 1948–1999, while taking into account the role of democracy. It finds that democracy is positively related to trade flows, but only after controlling for trade pair heterogeneity. In addition, it makes the case for studies of this nature to draw a distinction between trade flows in the pre- and post-1990s period of rapid democratization as well as between developed and developing countries.     

Cultural distance and cross-border bank linkages

This study investigates the effect of cultural distance on global bank linkages using country-pair data for the period 1990–2013. We followed Schwartz (2006) to measure cultural distance, and employed the number of bank pairs involved in cross-border syndicated lending from the source to target countries as a measure of bank linkages. We found that cultural distance has a negative association with bank linkages. This effect is stronger in countries featuring higher informational asymmetries, as represented by weaker institutions, higher uncertainty, or revolution shocks. Our results hold even when employing alternative measures of bank linkages and cultural distance, and when considering the potential endogeneity of cultural distance.     

Cultural distance in international business and management: from mean-based to variance-based measures

Extant practice in international management is to measure cultural distance as a nation-to-nation comparison of country means on cultural values, thereby ignoring the cultural variation that exists within countries. We argue that these traditional mean-based measures of cultural distance should take within-country cultural variation into account. Therefore, we propose the use of variance-based measures of cultural distance. To illustrate our argument, we examine total US foreign affiliate sales in more than 40 host countries over the 1983–2008 period, complemented with data from the World Values Survey. We analyze the effects of three cultural distance measures: the Kogut and Singh (1988 Kogut, B., and Singh, H. (1988), ‘The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode,’ Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 411–432.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) mean-based index of cultural distance, the Kogut and Singh (1988 Kogut, B., and Singh, H. (1988), ‘The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode,’ Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 411–432.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) index conditioned by host-country cultural variation and a variance-based measure that takes into account both home- and host-country cultural variation. Our findings indicate that, when within-country cultural variation is taken into account, the explanatory power of the Kogut and Singh (1988 Kogut, B., and Singh, H. (1988), ‘The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode,’ Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 411–432.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) index is substantially decreased. In addition, our variance-based measure of cultural distance outperforms the Kogut and Singh (1988 Kogut, B., and Singh, H. (1988), ‘The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode,’ Journal of International Business Studies, 19, 411–432.[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) measure in the explanation of foreign US sales. We therefore suggest to move from mean-based to variance-based measures of cultural distance, thereby taking the cultural variation within countries into account.     

Gender,family ties,and international mobility: Cultural distance matters

This study empirically tests a model of associations between family-domain variables and willingness to accept an international assignment, and applies the general model to sub-samples of men and women to examine gender differences in the pattern of relationships. We further explore these patterns in culturally similar and culturally distant country destinations. Analyses conducted with a sample of 148 men and 79 women employed MBA graduates from dual-earner couples revealed that perceived spouse willingness to relocate, beliefs regarding spouse and couple mobility, relative income, and the presence of children are associated with willingness to accept an international assignment. Moreover, consistent with social role theory, significant gender differences in willingness were found across low and high cultural distance country destinations.     

Production networks and international trade: China,Brazil and Mexico

In this paper, we examine and contrast the production networks in China, Brazil and Mexico. We highlight three results. First, over the last two decades, China's intensity of trade in parts and components has shifted from other members of Greater China to South Korea and ASEAN countries. Second, even though China's production network is mainly Asian, its parts and components trading partners are increasingly global. Brazil also increasingly trades its parts with China and East Asia, while Mexico is still focused on its trade with the United States. Third, Greater China has become a major source of parts and components to Mexican and Brazilian imports. We highlight the importance of such a pan-Pacific link and anticipate that the joint China–Brazil–Mexico production network will continue to grow.     

Institutional distance and international networking

We focus on how small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) adapt to differences in institutional logics (values, beliefs, and rules) in their networking when they enter an institutionally distant market. We address gaps in the literature, relating to the role of institutional logics in SME internationalization, and how institutional distance affects the formation of network ties. We show how the social interaction involved in internationalization is embedded in the institutional logics followed by partnering actors. Specifically, we demonstrate how institutional distance may constrain the networking activities of SMEs and identify practices that may support successful internationalization.     

The political economy of international trade and factor mobility

Abstract. Free trade in goods and factors is efficient. When we move away from economic theory and consider the policies actually followed by governments, we observe distortions being implemented both on goods and factors trades. It is natural then to question the relative merits of the two types of intervention, and the normative literature has provided only partial answers. We ask then why is the international flow of goods and factors not free, and the political economy literature has looked at the two issues only separately. In studying the determination of trade policy, a theoretical paradigm has emerged, focusing on the role of influence driven contributions. This approach has also found strong empirical support. The literature on the political economy of factor mobility, on the other hand, is fragmented. Distortions in labor and capital flows are typically the subject of different studies, and only recently a unified framework has been proposed. More work has to be done in this area as well as in integrating the political economy of trade and factor movements.     

Globalization and trade union strategy: industrial restructuring and human resource management in the international civil aviation industry

For trade unions, the central problematic of globalization is the growing disparity between the mobility of capital and labour. The ability of capital to operate on a trans-national basis is widely perceived to have precipitated a process of cost cutting as international companies seek to cut workers' remuneration and other conditions of employment. However, systematic empirical evidence on the impact of globalization on human resource management is hard to find, as is any assessment of the differential impact of globalization on different occupational groups or the response of trade unions to any deterioration in their members' terms and conditions of employment. Focusing on the international civil aviation industry, we examine the effects of globalization on human resource management and the national and international strategies developed by organized labour in response. Although the evidence suggests that there is indeed a concerted effort by major airlines to cut costs, trade unions have been able to retard the pace of change and effectively defend the interests of some occupational groups. Moreover, the future course of globalization will be contested through new international strategies and repertoires of collective action developed by the trade union movement.     

Power distance and its implications for upward communication and empowerment: crisis management and recovery in hospitality services

This study explores the influence of power distance in a relatively high power distance culture (Turkish) and a relatively low power distance culture (British) from the viewpoint of the expressions used by subordinates when communicating with their superiors in situations of service crises and recovery. The findings suggest that in Turkey subordinates use much more mitigated and indirect expressions when faced with service crises which may lead delays in the identification and solving of customer problems. This, in turn, is believed to cause a failure in the formation of customer loyalty and an increase in the customer switching behaviour.     

北京与上海:国际服务贸易发展比较研究

在比较分析北京和上海服务贸易发展现状的基础上,指出两地在服务贸易发展环境、总量水平和结构布局方面都具有共同特征,但基于不同的城市性质和功能定位以及不同的经济发展环境和条件,两地服务贸易发展也存在一定的差异。因此,今后两地在保持已有发展优势的同时,应根据自身发展目标定位和产业基础,在服务贸易支持、贸易促进和战略规划方面充分挖掘新的服务贸易增长点。     

By force of demand: Explaining cyclical fluctuations of international trade and government spending

This paper explores the role of demand shocks, as an alternative to productivity shocks, in driving both domestic and international business cycles within the international real business cycle (IRBC) framework. In addition to those well-documented domestic business cycle fluctuations (e.g., the volatility and cyclicality of output, consumption, investment, labor hours, and labor productivity) and international business cycle properties (e.g., the countercyclical net export and the comovement puzzle), this paper focuses on two additional stylized facts in the industrialized countries: the procyclical trade openness (the GDP fraction of trade volume) and the countercyclical government size (the GDP fraction of government spending). Using a parsimonious dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model, we show that the model׳s predictions under productivity shocks are not consistent with these facts. Instead, a demand-shock-driven model replicates the above facts while matching other domestic and international business cycle properties. An estimated version of the model confirms the quantitatively important impacts of demand shocks.     

测度中国与G-7的双边贸易成本——一个改进引力模型方法的应用

传统引力模型方法在测度贸易成本时,由于缺乏微观理论基础,往往事前假定贸易成本的构成并且忽略多边阻力的影响而广受批评。基于一个融入双边冰山型贸易成本的多边一般均衡贸易模型,本文采用的改进引力模型能够弥补上述缺陷。运用该模型我们综合测度了1980~2006年中国与G-7各国关税等价的双边贸易成本。结果表明,中国与这些国家关税等价的贸易成本都已经低于50%,与1980年相比,到2006年平均下降幅度高达30%,并且在入世以后呈现加速下降的趋势。这充分说明近30年来,中国的对外开放程度不断提升,正加速融入全球经济一体化之中。     

产业内贸易与服务贸易竞争力关系理论综述

随着经济的发展,产业内贸易、服务贸易在今天的社会生活中变得日益重要,产业内贸易的发展对推动服务贸易的发展,提高服务贸易国际竞争力的作用也越来越得到人们的关注。文章分别对产业内贸易、服务贸易竞争力及涉及其两者间关系的理论进行梳理总结。     

中国与金砖国家间农产品贸易成本弹性测度与分析

本文在Novy(2013)超越对数引力模型基础上把国内民主化程度作为政治因素从出口国和进口国两条路径引入该模型对其进行改进,并利用改进后的模型对中国与金砖国家部分农产品贸易成本弹性分别进行测度。结果显示中国与金砖国家农产品贸易成本弹性均为正,中国与金砖国家通过降低贸易成本均可提高贸易量。然而中国出口与进口贸易成本弹性差值均为负,中国总体不具有相对优势。从细分产品结构来看,中国可以优先考虑本国优势产品,重点在优势产品领域积极推进贸易自由化和便利化。中国与金砖国家存在产业内贸易潜力较大产品,中国可以与金砖国家在不同层次加深农业分工与合作,分散中国农产品贸易风险,实现对外贸易多元化和可持续发展。     

Cultural distance and expatriate failure rates: the moderating role of expatriate management practices

Abstract

This study examines moderators of the relationship between cultural distance and the two critical indicators of expatriate failure – maladjustment and premature return rates. Results based on a sample of 126 Taiwanese multinational corporations indicate that expatriate selection and performance management practices moderate the cultural distance–expatriate maladjustment relationship, and expatriate performance management practices moderate the cultural distance–premature return relationship. Additionally, these relationships were stronger when the use of practices was low. We discuss theoretical and practical implications, and offer suggestions for future research.     

Industry localization,distance decay,and knowledge spillovers: Following the patent paper trail

This paper investigates Alfred Marshall’s hypothesis that knowledge spillovers increase where industries are localized. At the same time, we take a fresh look at the role of distance in the diffusion of knowledge spillovers. Relying on a cited-citing gravity-like equation with high-dimensional fixed effects that control for multiple sources of observed and non-observed heterogeneity, we implement a Poisson pseudo-maximum-likelihood (PPML) estimator. We find that knowledge spillovers correlate positively with industry localization and that the agglomeration of an industry can offset the adverse effect of distance. The results also corroborate the distance decay effect uncovered in earlier research. Our new approach to estimate the PPML with two high-dimensional fixed effects should prove valuable in applications to a variety of other problems in economics, such as the estimation of gravity equations widely used in modeling migration, trade and other flows among countries and regions.     

On the distributional effects of trade policy: Dynamics of household saving and asset prices

This paper studies the effect of trade liberalization on inequality. We develop a theoretical framework that generates economy-wide distributions of wealth and income for different levels of trade protection. The model unambiguously determines the effect of liberalization on inequality; and rationalizes why larger inequality can be the outcome of a welfare enhancing policy, as households reduce their buffer savings when liberalization lowers the price of food. The framework reconciles the increase in inequality, the fall in the value of land, and farmers’ opposition to freer trade, that have featured in different liberalization episodes. We also present empirical support for the model’s predictions.     

Human resource management,trade unions and empowerment: two cases from India

This paper discusses the introduction of schemes aimed at employee empowerment within a context of strong industrial relations in India. The pressure put on profit margins by a competitive business environment is forcing an increasing number of Indian enterprises to view employee empowerment as a serious strategic option. Getting workers to take responsibility for shop-floor decisions over quality, safety, productivity and material use appears, at first sight, an alluring prospect. It would seem that men and women at the bottom of the pyramid cannot but be warmly appreciative of power-sharing arrangements from which they have something to gain, but there are forces at work which can actively obstruct or quietly subvert attempts at redistributing power. In this paper the focus is on some of the motives a trade union might have to do so.     

中部六省承接东部地区加工贸易产业转移比较研究——基于引力模型的分析

产业转移是促进区域经济发展的有力工具,也是产业转移双方的双赢选择.本文在综述产业转移相关文献的基础上,将引力模型引入产业转移的研究中,给出了产业转移力度的测算模型.并具体以加工贸易产业为例,选取了具有代表性的六个东部省(市)以及中部六省为研究对象,对其2006-2008年间加工贸易产业转移趋势进行了测算和分析,这对定量...