The political embeddedness of private economic transactions
Article Abstract:
Governments are able to manipulate economic transactions in order to achieve foreign policy goals. This article addressses the question: can managers of multinational enterprises (MNEs) structure economic transactions in ways that will limit the costs resulting from government intervention? Using a transaction cost framework, the efficiency of alternative structures (exporting, joint ventures, licensing, or wholly owned subsidiaries) for protecting a firm's interests are assessed. We argue that the traditional focus on the dyadic relationship between supplier and buyer misses sources of transaction costs; by conceptualizing economic transactions as embedded in a political context, additional sources of transaction costs are revealed. We examine three cases of home government intervention in US MNE transactions with the Soviet Union. We find that the full range of structural alternatives is affected by government sanctions, although sanctions are imposed on exporting relationships first and removed last. We find that MNEs are, therefore, beginning to insulate international transactions by making their overseas subsidiaries more independent od US technology and supplies with the hope that the US government will be less likely to impose its will extraterritorially by intervening in foreign subsidiaries' private economic transactions. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Management Studies
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0022-2380
Year: 1993
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Hotspots
Article Abstract:
Maps and tables are presented that provide information on the sportfish and big game available in the hunting and fishing regions of Alaska. A guide to the peak months of the fishing season and statistics on game kills are included.
Publication Name: Outdoor Life
Subject: Sports and fitness
ISSN: 0030-7076
Year: 1996
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Tomba, Alberto
Article Abstract:
Alberto Tomba is an Italian ski racer famed for his skill as a skier, his magnetic personality and his playboy lifestyle. Tomba's life and career in skiing are profiled.
Publication Name: Current Biography
Subject: History
ISSN: 0011-3344
Year: 1993
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