Foreign entry mode selection strategies in banking: an issue of control and resources

The increase in foreign acquisitions and joint ventures, which have followed recent environmental changes in the banking sector, suggest that banks have modified their internationalization strategies. Motivated by this observation and the lack of research which could explain the foreign entry mode selection strategies of banks, this study has developed and tested a framework of foreign entry mode selection in banking. Drawing on existing literature, the study argues that managers select entry routes based on their desire for control and need for complementary resources. These motives are products of the evaluation of host country, target market and firm-specific factors. This two-stage model has been tested by collecting data through mailed questionnaires sent to 600 bank managers. Using multinomial logit and multiple regression, the validated data from 124 usable questionnaires were analyzed. The results suggest that bank managers' motives for control and resources can determine the selection of foreign direct investment (FDI) entry modes. Control motives differentiate greenfield investments and acquisitions from joint ventures, and resource motives differentiate acquisitions and joint ventures from greenfield investments. When both motives are considered together, one entry mode is determined. However, findings have shown that these motives are not a result of the evaluation of the foreign venture under investigation, rather, they reflect mangers' general preferences for control and resources. Drawing on these findings, this piece of research has proposed a single-stage model where these preferences are evaluated concurrently with factors related to the specific entry. Testing this model has shown that besides bank managers' general preferences for control and resources, host country risks, target market conditions and the bank's product and network strategies also influence the choice of entry modes. By considering both control and resource issues, this study has managed to integrate previous research on entry mode selection and comprehensively investigate all FDI entry modes. In addition, it has provided a paradigm of integration of the macro-level economic theories on internationalization of banking with firm-focused theories. This has been achieved by consolidating Dunning's eclectic theory with entry mode selection themes such as transaction cost analysis, barriers to entry, internationalization process and network coordination and configuration

Assessment of How Natural Stand Structure for Narrow Endemic Cedrus brevifolia Henry Supports Silvicultural Treatments for Its Sustainable Management

Cedrus brevifolia Henry is a narrow endemic tree species of Cyprus flora. The objectives of this study are to develop silvicultural treatments for the conservation of the species formations based on the stand structure analysis of C. brevifolia natural forest and to present the characteristics of the first application of the treatments through silvicultural interventions. Six structural types were distinguished in C. brevifolia formations in the study area located in the state forest of Paphos. For each structural type, six circular plots of approximately 500 m2 were established. In each plot, various measurements and estimations were recorded. Then, silvicultural interventions were applied in the plots of the mixed C. brevifolia formations. In the formations of C. brevifolia a great number of trees grow in the understory. In the very productive and in the poorly productive sites C. brevifolia occurs only in pure formations. The basal area of C. brevifolia in pure formations ranges from 19.04 m2·ha-1 in poorly productive sites to 38.49 m2·ha-1 in fairly productive sites. Cedrus brevifolia is the most competitive species of the study area as a result of both shade tolerance and the wide range of its site sensitivity behavior. The climax of the study area are the pure stands of C. brevifolia having an understory of Quercus alnifolia Poech and a sparse occurrence of Pinus brutia Ten., mainly in moderately productive sites. Forest practice has to, as much as possible, unite species formations in order to create extensive areas of C. brevifolia formations

Linear Growth through 12 Years is Weakly but Consistently Associated with Language and Math Achievement Scores at Age 12 Years in 4 Low- or Middle-Income Countries.

BackgroundWhether linear growth through age 12 y is associated with language and math achievement at age 12 y remains unclear.ObjectiveOur objective was to investigate associations of linear growth through age 12 y with reading skill, receptive vocabulary, and mathematics performance at age 12 y in 4 low- or middle-income countries (LMICs).MethodsWe analyzed data from the Young Lives Younger Cohort study in Ethiopia (n = 1275), India (n = 1350), Peru (n = 1402), and Vietnam (n = 1594). Age 1, 5, 8, and 12 y height-for-age z scores (HAZ) were calculated. Language and math achievement at age 12 y was assessed with the use of country-specific adaptations of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, the Early Grades Reading Assessment, and a mathematics test; all test scores were standardized by age within country. We used path analysis to examine associations of HAZ with achievement scores. Twelve models were examined at each age (3 tests across 4 countries).ResultsMean HAZ in each country was <-1.00 at all ages. Overall, linear growth through age 12 y was associated with 0.4-3.4% of the variance in achievement scores. HAZ at 1 y was positively and significantly associated with the test score in 11 of the 12 models. This association was significantly mediated through HAZ at 5, 8, and 12 y in 9 of the models. HAZ at 5, 8, and 12 y was positively and significantly associated with test scores in 8, 8, and 6 models, respectively. These associations were mediated through HAZ at older ages in 6 of the HAZ at 5-y models and in 6 of the HAZ at 8-y models.ConclusionChild relative linear growth between ages 1 and 12 y was weakly but consistently associated with language and math achievement at age 12 y in 4 LMICs

Spin-polarized multiexcitons in quantum dots in the presence of spin-orbit interaction

An efficient electron spin-relaxation mechanism has been observed in InAs quantum dots (QDs) that manifests itself as a sharp drop in the circular polarization of the light emitted by Fe spin-light emitting diodes, which incorporate a single layer of InGaAs QDs, for a narrow range of magnetic fields around 5 T. The underlying mechanism occurs when the QDs are occupied by three-electron-hole pairs forming a tri-exciton (3X) and is a two-step process. The first step involves the spin flip of one of the three electrons mediated by the spin-orbit interaction; in the second step the 3X relaxes to its ground state via phonon emission

A pathological fracture and a solitary mass in the right clavicle: an unusual first presentation of HCC and the role of immunohistochemistry

<p>Absrtract</p> <p>Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is an aggressive malignant tumor that occurs throughout the world. Μetastases from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were generally considered to be rare in the past, because the carcinoma had an aggressive clinical course. In our era, has been reported that extra-hepatic metastases occur in 13.5%-41.7% of HCC patients and this is considered as terminal-stage cancer. The prognosis for patients at this stage continues to be poor due to limited effective treatment. The common sites of extrahepatic metastases in patients with HCC are the lungs, regional lymph nodes, kidney, bone marrow and adrenals. We present here an extremely infrequent case of a patient, without known liver disease, in which the presenting symptom was a pathological-in retrospect-fracture of his right clavicle which wasn't properly evaluated, until he presented a bulky mass in the region 6 months later. For our patient, the added diagnostic difficulty alongside the unknown liver disease, has been that the clavicular metastases was the first presentation of any metastatic disease, rather than the more common sites of HCC spread to adjacent lung or lymph nodes.</p

Growth Recovery and Faltering through Early Adolescence in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Determinants and Implications for Cognitive Development

Child chronic undernutrition, as measured by stunting, is prevalent in low- and middle-income countries and is among the major threats to child development. While stunting and its implications for cognitive development have been considered irreversible beyond early childhood, there is a lack of consensus in the literature on this, as there is some evidence of recovery from stunting and that this recovery may be associated with improvements in cognition. Less is known, however, about the drivers of growth recovery and the aspects of recovery linked to cognitive development. In this paper, we investigate the factors associated with growth recovery and faltering through age 12 years and the implications of the incidence, timing, and persistence of post-infancy recovery from stunting for cognitive development using longitudinal data from Ethiopia, India, Peru, and Vietnam. We find that the factors most systematically associated with accelerated growth both before and after early childhood and across countries include mother’s height, household living standards and shocks, community wages, food prices, and garbage collection. Our results suggest that post-infancy recovery from stunting is more likely to be systematically associated with higher achievement scores across countries when it is persistent and that associations between growth trajectories and cognitive achievement in middle childhood do not persist through early adolescence across countries. Overall, our findings indicate that growth after early childhood is responsive to changes in the household and community environments and that growth promotion after early childhood may yield improvements in child cognitive development