Effects of Repatriations Risk on the Choice of Entry Modes Used by U.S. Manufacturing Firms in LDCs

The relationship between repatriations risk and modes of entry continues to interest researchers and practitioners alike. Frequently the structure of functions necessary to develop an efficient and effective international organization are determined by the mode of entry used. Repatriations risk in less developed countries (LDCs) is still a reality especially in light of their increasing debt burden. The objective of this study was to determine whether U.S. manufacturing firms used exporting instead of licensing as a hedge against repatriations risk in developing country markets. Using time-series (1973-86) and cross-sectional data (20 nations), the findings suggest that exporting was used to hedge against repatriations risk in LDCs.     

Effect of Customers' and Suppliers' Perceptions of the Market Orientation of Manufacturing Firms on Channel Relationships and Financial Performance

ABSTRACT

This study is designed to investigate the effect of customers' and suppliers' perceptions of the market orientation of manufacturing firms on customers' and suppliers' trust in, cooperative norms in, and satisfaction with the relationship with the manufacturing firm. The findings from a sample of 72 matched sets of suppliers, manufacturing firms and customers in industrial channels in the Netherlands reveal that the perceived market orientation of manufacturing firms engaged in channel partnerships has a positive influence on customers' and suppliers' levels of trust in, cooperative norms in, and satisfaction with the relationship. This study further investigates the effect of the customers' and suppliers' trust in, cooperative norms in, and satisfaction with the relationship on the financial performance of the manufacturing firm. The results reveal that customers' and suppliers' cooperative norms in the relationship positively influence the manufacturing firm's financial performance. Customer's and supplier's trust in and satisfaction with the relationship have no effect on the manufacturing firm's financial performance.     

美国对外贸易的理念和货物贸易的基本格局

自由贸易是美国对外贸易的基本理念。贸易自由化是战后美国对外贸易政策的基本特征,原因在于贸易自由化每年给美国带来1万亿美元左右的收益。对美国货物贸易的基本格局可以从五个方面认识:美国是世界上进出口规模最大的国家;美国进口规模比出口规模对世界经济的影响更大;美国是世界上最大的贸易逆差国,享受了世界最多的物质财富;美国贸易条件的变动表明对外贸易格局有利于美国;美国进口规模扩大与产业结构升级的结合演变为美国结构性增长优势。     

Regulatory Reform and the U.S. Manufacturing Sector

The Bush administration, through the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OMB/OIRA), has shown renewed interest in regulatory reform as an important public issue, especially as it pertains to the nation’s manufacturing sector. On March 9, 2005, OMB/OIRA announced that Federal agencies will be taking practical steps of an administrative nature to reduce the cost burden on manufacturing firms operating in the United States by acting on 76 suggested reforms of federal regulations suggested by the public. Recommended actions range from gathering and reporting additional information to issuing modernized regulations, with reforms to be implemented through rulemaking procedures that include an opportunity for public participation. JEL Classification L510     

The U.S. Television Set Market

The U.S. television set market is projected to reach the $27 billion mark by 2010, up from $25 billion in 2006. The bulk of this growth will come from the flat-panel television set segment, which is projected to grow 65 percent from 2006-2010. The transition to digital television continues to be a major underpinning of the television set market in the United States. Additionally, consumers are increasingly looking to use their television sets for a myriad of non-traditional activities including accessing the Internet, checking e-mail, and watching content accessed from hardware devices like digital video recorders. JEL Classification L63     

Domain-Specific Consumer Involvement in the U.S. Wine Market

An 18-item multidimensional scale was developed to measure wine consumer involvement level impact on behavior and consumption dynamics. Data were collected at wine tasting events in Portland, Oregon, U.S., yielding a final sample size of 101 respondents. Male wine consumers do not display a higher level of involvement with wine as a product than females, and neither do consumers 45 years and older in comparison with younger consumers. Consumers with high education and income levels do not use these as a basis of their involvement level with wine. Price is not more frequently used by low involvement wine drinkers in the wine purchasing decision.     

Reaching the U.S. Hispanic Wine Market: Highlighting the Opportunities

With over 50 million Hispanics living in the United States commanding 1.2 trillion dollars in purchasing power, Hispanic wine consumers may comprise a lucrative market for the saturated wine industry. Yet the wine industry has largely ignored consumers who do not fit the profile of its traditional demographic base. This study aims to fill a gap in the existing body of knowledge on Hispanic consumers of wine. Building on acculturation theory, the current study investigates predominant attitudes, opinions, and interests of the Hispanic consumer relating to wine consumption. The results of three focus groups indicate that the core cultural values of family, food, and social interaction are critical factors in developing an interest in wine among Hispanic wine consumers. Levels of acculturation also play a significant role in wine consumption among Hispanic consumers. Special attention should be addressed to younger, more acculturated consumers, as they are not only the primary consumers of wine but also advocates for wine for their parents and other groups of consumers.     

美国陶瓷品市场持续看好

●艺术陶瓷 据美国统计局(US Bureau of Census)统计资料显示,2001年1至5月底止,美国艺术陶瓷总进口额为2.45亿美元,前5名依次为中国(1.24亿美元)、西班牙(2005万美元)、墨西哥(1473万美元)、意大利(1360万美元)、德国(986万美元).     

Measuring Vulnerability to U.S. Foreign Economic Sanctions

Economic sanctions are an important instrument of U.S. foreign policy. While politicians look favorably on unilateral economic sanctions as a policy instrument, many scholars attribute significant long-term economic costs to the United States and have doubts about their effectiveness. We outline a simple approach to assess the vulnerability of target countries to sanctions in order to develop focused sanctions and reduce unnecessary costs to U.S. business, avoid the imposition of sanctions on countries when sanctions are unlikely to have the desired effects, and determine what other countries must join the United States in imposing sanctions if they are to be effective.JEL Classification K330,F190     

Relational and Process Multiplexity in Vertical Supply Chain Triads: An Exploration in the U.S. Restaurant Industry

Both supply chain relationships and process connections between organizational units have been studied in business research, to enhance the understanding of supply chain integration, and to explore the differential outcomes of both types of connections for business and functional performance. However, the extant research remains deficient in two ways: within individual studies, researchers have operationalized supply chain connectivity unidimensionally, with the concept of connectivity constrained to either social relations or operational/process ties while disregarding the other viewpoint. Additionally, researchers have persistently designed studies to evaluate dyadic structures, while foregoing the larger, more intricate structures representative of complex supply chains. We address these issues by modeling supply chain connectivity as having multiple relational‐ and process‐based threads comprising linkages, and by empirically testing a set of theorized relationships describing vertical triadic supply chain networks (manufacturer, broker, retailer) within the U.S. restaurant industry. We find that increased supply chain connectivity improves chain performance, but this improvement is more directly attributable to process‐based linkages than relational linkages, which impact performance only through the process mediator variable, suggesting that current theories of interorganizational relationalism may lack complete conceptualization. Implications of these findings for managers and the academy are highlighted, and areas of follow‐on research are discussed.     

Returns to Scale in Small and Large U.S. Manufacturing Establishments: Further Evidence

Nguyen and Reznek (1991) used plant-level data for five 4-digit SIC industries to estimate and compare the degrees of returns-to-scale for establishments of various size classes for the years 1977 and 1982. They found that the estimated scale elasticities of all plant sizes have values approximately equal to one. They, therefore, concluded that both small and large establishments under study are equally efficient in production. The purpose of the present study is to extend and improve upon Nguyen and Reznek's work by (1) extending the data set to cover the entire U.S. manufacturing sector, (2) improving the model by including energy as a separate input in production, and (3) relaxing the assumption of homogeneity and estimating an unrestricted (non-homogeneous, non-homothetic) production model. With the improved model and data, it is found that the estimated scale elasticities for all sizes of establishment are statistically insignificantly different from one. Thus, the result confirms and strengthens Nguyen and Reznek's finding that a large establishment size is not a necessary condition for efficient production.     

Co-Creating Value in a Retail Market Setting

It is usually assumed that the co-creation of value requires a close relationship between producers and customers. Typically, this is easier in a business-to-business context, where the numbers of customers and suppliers are relatively low and the capabilities and needs of each partner can readily be assessed. On the other hand, it could be assumed that the co-creation of value in a business-to-consumer context is likely to be more difficult, given the larger numbers of customers and more frequent, short-term, discrete transactions. This article investigates whether it is possible to co-create valuable consumer experiences in a mass market setting by examining the customer relationship strategies of eight Norwegian seafood retailers. The results show that considerable effort from both retailers and consumers are devoted to co-create valuable consumer experiences. We also reveal a repertoire of strategies to engage customers in the co-creation process. Findings are discussed and implications highlighted.     

An Empirical Model of the Sources of Innovation in the U.S. Manufacturing Sector

This paper estimates a simple model of innovation in the U.S. manufacturing sector and derives summary indicators of product and process innovation. Our empirical work reveals that the drivers of innovation extend well beyond business research and development spending. Capital investment, cutting-edge scientific output from academic institutions, and the growth of the science and engineering workforce all matter. The dynamic structure of our model suggests that policymakers must look beyond the short-term when developing and evaluating innovation initiatives because there can be lags of several years before inputs are fully realized in innovative performance. But simple simulations conducted with our equations indicate that even a modest increase in key innovation inputs reaps significant benefits. JEL Classification O31     

反补贴价格比较基准:基于美国对市场经济国家案例的考察

频繁采用外部基准计算补贴利益是美国对华反补贴调查中的一大焦点问题。但是,美国调查当局强调,该方法完全依据现行反补贴法,其实施也早有先例,并非仅针对"非市场经济"国家。本文通过一系列美国对市场经济国家反补贴典型案例的考察,得出的基本结论是:外部基准确实是其在对市场经济国家反补贴调查中价格比较的基本方法之一,而受调查国政府通过所拥有或控制的金融机构、国有企业向涉案企业提供贷款或原材料投入是适用外部基准的两类主要情形。     

Impacts of Generic and Brand Advertising in the U.S. Potato Market

Abstract

The impacts of generic and branded advertising in the U.S. fresh potato, retail frozen potato, and potato chip markets are examined under exogenous and endogenous raw potato supply. The Almost Ideal Demand System is used to estimate the demand components. The general equilibrium elasticities derived from the complete model are used in a simulation analysis to assess the cross-commodity effects of incremental increases in advertising expenditures on equilibrium prices, quantities, revenues, and profits in each sector. The endogeneity of grower supply mitigate the impacts of advertising in the raw commodity sector and in the retail sectors.     

利益集团能主导美国的制造业回归吗

文章在国际贸易政治经济学的理论框架下考察利益集团是否能主导美国制造业回归的问题。以100个参议员为样本,运用完全信息极大似然法(FIML)进行模型估计与分析,定量考察两个美国制造业回归法案(S. Amdt. 523和S. Amdt. 817)投票结果背后蕴含的深层次驱动因素。实证结果显示,不同利益集团政治捐资对制造业回归法案投票的影响是不同的,美国劳工组织的政治捐资显著影响了议员的投票行为,但商业集团和意识形态组织并未对投票结果发挥显著作用。另外,议员的个人特征在一定程度上影响了政治捐资情况,但不影响投票结果。选区经济社会特征对议员投票结果没有显著影响。未来中国需要持续关注美国制造业回归的最新进展并正确评估对中国经济的影响,与美国重要利益集团保持沟通协调,以减少对我国相关产业的负面影响。     

俞永福 下一站——美国

<正>拥有了3亿多季度活跃用户,掌握着手机浏览器这一平台级移动互联网入口产品,UCWebCEO俞永福有了更大的梦想:向全球市场进军。美国将是UCCEO俞永福的下一个目标。他曾是年薪百万元的联想投资副总裁,在中国企业家"教父"柳传志身边工作过6年。而在出人意料地加入UC之后,他用了6年时间,把产品"卖"到了全世界。     

Market Conduct and Endogenous Lobbying: Evidence from the U.S. Mobile Telecommunications Industry

This paper empirically explores the relationship between firms' market behavior and their lobbying activities in a regulated market. In particular, we investigate whether the amount of contributions offered by cellular service providers to fund the campaigns of political parties affected market conduct in the early US mobile telecommunications industry. We structurally estimate market interactions while taking the potential endogeneity of lobbying decisions into account. Our results show that competition was more intense in those states where campaign contributions by the cellular industry have been higher. Furthermore, we reject the hypothesis that lobbying activities can be regarded as exogenous in the study of market conduct.     

The Impact of U.S.-Sponsored Foreign Trade Office Activities

ABSTRACT

Foreign trade offices (FTOs) are an important, little-understood element in the export promotion portfolio of U.S. state export promotion organizations. The value of these organizations is in dispute. In recent years California closed its FTOs in response to budgetary pressures, claiming that these organizations exist primarily to enhance the political standing of politicians rather than to act as effective export development tools. During the same period Washington State opened several new FTOs. Clearly the value of these organizations is in dispute. Another consideration in the effectiveness of U.S. exporters is the subnational contour of the American economic system. State business climates vary considerably, thereby influencing exporter success as well as those programs (such as FTOs) intended to improve firm performance. We hypothesize and find that (a) state entrepreneurial climate is positively related to state exports and (b) FTO network entry activities amplify the impact of state entrepreneurial climate on state exports. Implications for firms and policy makers are explored.