Policy uncertainty, derivatives use, and firm-level FDI

We explore the link between uncertainty in economic policy, firm level FDI, and firm hedging behaviour - building upon a newspaper-based index of economic policy uncertainty (EPU). We find that relative difference in EPU between home and host country has a significant relationship with FDI. Firms increase their FDI level in countries, which have a low level of EPU relative to their home country. In addition, firms use derivatives more intensively in response to an increase in EPU. Interestingly, the link between EPU and corporate derivatives use varies according to the type of firm. Domestic MNCs make the most effective use of derivatives to hedge against EPU exposure

Changing perspectives on the internationalization of R&D and innovation by multinational enterprises: a review of the literature

Internationalization of R&D and innovation by Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) has undergone a gradual and comprehensive change in perspective over the past 50 years. From sporadic works in the late 1950s and in the 1960s, it became a systematically analysed topic in the 1970s, starting with pioneering reports and “foundation texts”. Our review unfolds the theoretical and empirical evolution of the literature from dyadic interpretations of centralization versus decentralization of R&D by MNEs to more comprehensive frameworks, wherein established MNEs from Advanced Economies still play a pivotal role, but new players and places also emerge in the global generation and diffusion of knowledge. Hence views of R&D internationalization increasingly rely on concepts, ideas and methods from IB and other related disciplines such as industrial organization, international economics and economic geography. Two main findings are highlighted. First, scholarly research pays an increasing attention to the network-like characteristics of international R&D activities. Second, different streams of literature have emphasized the role of location- specific factors in R&D internationalization. The increasing emphasis on these aspects has created new research opportunities in some key areas, including inter alia: cross-border knowledge sourcing strategies, changes in the geography of R&D and innovation, and the international fragmentation of production and R&D activities

The impact of multinational and domestic enterprises on regional productivity: the evidence from the UK

The paper explores the effects of Multinational and Domestic Enterprises (MNEs and DOMES respectively) on regional productivity both in theory and in the case of UK regions. Our empirical evidence shows that MNEs are more intensive in terms of R&D and intangibles and this has a stronger effect on regional productivity. This result however is moderated by the origin of the MNEs. When we control for this, we find that DOMEs can outperform certain MNEs from specific origins. In particular, we conclude that laggard regions can more easily absorb the managerial and organisational expertise of DOMEs; and that home country-shaped MNE strategies may not be always aligned to the needs of host regions

The role of subsidiaries in Global Value Chains (GVCs): an institutional voids perspective on LVC upgrading and integration

We explore the process through which MNE subsidiaries engage and retain a critical mass of small suppliers in Global Value Chains (GVCs) while addressing institutional voids in emerging markets. Using evidence from an interpretive inductive longitudinal case study in agribusiness, we draw on the GVC and institutional voids literatures to: (1) extend the GVC literature by offering a subsidiary-focused view of GVCs; and (2) demonstrate the dynamic process of void engagement through complementary institutional bridging activities. Our temporal sequencing of subsidiary institutional agency in response to different modalities of voids demonstrates a constellation of bridging activities that results from a dynamic interplay between voids and practice

The internationalization of innovation towards the South: a historical case study of a global pharmaceutical corporation in China (1993-2017)

Intensified competition means that multinational enterprises (MNEs) are increasingly concerned with locating innovation activities in the most appropriate locations. This had led to emerging economies in the South becoming an important destination of R&D-related foreign direct investment (FDI), departing from their traditional role as low-cost production sites. Thus far, however, our understanding of this transformation process is limited. The purpose of this article is therefore to explore the process by which foreign MNEs’ low-value-adding operations in the South are transformed into high-value- adding R&D operations. Drawing on the current literature, we construct a framework of evolution consisting of four major waves of R&D internationalization and corresponding R&D objectives. To better understand how these waves have evolved over time, we focus on the South and trace the process of change using a single historical case study: AstraZeneca in China between 1993 and 2017. We find evidence of idiosyncratic location-bound conditions offering both opportunities and resources. The gradual development of these favourable conditions, along with AstraZeneca’s deepening local knowledge, triggered a transformation process in their operations in China. Our study thus offers important historical insights, which present a platform for future research providing more nuanced theoretical explanations of the four waves of R&D internationalization

Assessment of neotectonic landscape deformation in Evia Island, Greece, using GIS-based multi-criteria analysis

This study deals with the assessment and mapping of neotectonic landscape deformation in the northern part of the Evia Island (Central Greece). Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) utilizing Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) andWeighted Linear Combination (WLC) procedures were conducted for the calculation of the Neotectonic Landscape Deformation Index (NLDI). The study is based on the combination of morphotectonic, geomorphological and geological parameters. The GIS-based spatial MCDA led to the classification of the study area into five classes of neotectonic deformation (from very low to very high) and to a neotectonic deformation map. The results were compared with the outputs of a relative tectonic activity classification approach based on quantitative geomorphic analysis at a regional scale, including site-specific field observations. Areas of high and very high deformation are related to the major active faults of Dirfis, Kandili and Gregolimano- Telethrio. Other minor active normal faults of medium to high seismic risk level, affecting the northern and northeastern parts of the island, are also associated with areas of intense landscape neotectonic deformation

Guest editorial [Special Issue: Do multinational enterprise contribute to, or reduce global inequality?]

We continue the critical perspectives and conversations that critical perspectives on international business (cpoib) promotes by reflecting on the nature and impact of contemporary international business (IB) activities around the globe from inter-, trans- and multidisciplinary perspectives. The journal places a special emphasis on scholarly works that question the hegemony of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and that evaluate the effects of their IB activities on the global economy and national societies (cpoib, n.d.). Hence, for this special issue we invited submissions of articles that address the theme: “Do MNEs contribute to or reduce global inequality?”. Here, the term ‘inequality’ refers to various societal and economic phenomena inside or across nation states, such as income, gender, social class, economic conditions, and welfare

The internationalisation of innovation to China: the case of AstraZeneca PLC

The internationalisation of firms is increasingly concerned with locating innovation activities in the most appropriate locations, particularly for more strategic research and development projects. This article attempts to explore this area by taking a slightly different perspective – the internationalisation of innovations by advance-economy firms in less-advanced economies – which is increasingly prominent in international business development. This article describes the history of international expansion of AstraZeneca from 1990s to year 2014, which demonstrates the development of the company with its unique approach to international business operations, and in particular its innovation. In order to explain such a progress, considerations are given to a number of theoretical frameworks in terms of their explanatory power

MNE R&D internationalization in developing Asia

In line with the recent shift of R&D internationalization towards developing Asia, this Perspective paper reviews, contextualises, and evaluates the evolving patterns of creation, transfer, and assimilation of knowledge in multinational enterprises (MNEs). A typology is proposed consisting of four stylized nodes: West (industrialized mature economies), East One (emerging industrializing economies of developing Asia), East Two (Asian economies at an earlier stage of industrialization), and East Three (Asian economies with limited visible signs of industrialization). Within these nodes, this paper applies an institution-based view to discuss their diverse national innovation environment (with particular attention paid to governments, indigenous firms, and institutional conditions), and the network perspective to propose an intra-regional knowledge hierarchy, reflecting dynamic knowledge links

The interplay between subsidiary internal embeddedness and strategic options: evidence from top information technology multinational enterprises

Extending subsidiary embeddedness and strategy literature, we conceptualise the role of subsidiary ‘multiple’ internal embeddedness in determining different subsidiary strategic options. Building on the notion of ‘structural’ embeddedness found in prior research, we distinguish three levels of ‘internal’ subsidiary embeddedness (corporate, network, and self-reliant) using measures of hierarchy. We also identify three types of subsidiary strategy (horizontal integration, lateral integration, and diversification) in the context of information technology (IT) Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) to examine in-depth whether and how levels of internal embeddedness interacts and leads to distinctively different subsidiary strategies. Subsequently, we offer a conceptual model, at the subsidiary level, to illustrate how these relationships are interplayed, based on a sample of 1866 subsidiaries of the eight largest global IT MNEs across four continents (Europe, North America, Asia, and Africa). Subsidiary location is also found to be an important moderator of the interplay. Implications for future research on the relationship between multiple subsidiary internal embeddedness and subsidiary strategies are discussed and managerial implications are outlined