Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This second edition has a strong business, rather than economic, orientation and describes the key features of the European business environment. Emphasis is placed upon business-centred material with only minimal coverage of difficult economic concepts. The book covers international business in the context of Europe and European companies, as well as coverage of the broader global framework, to give a balanced account of developments in international business. It looks at the impact of the Single European Market and Central and Eastern European economies; considers the implications for international business of European Monetary Union; and covers green issues, business ethics and EU industrial policy.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• List of figures (p. xiv)
• List of tables (p. xv)
• List of case studies (p. xvii)
• List of abbreviations (p. xix)
• Notes on contributors (p. xxii)
• Acknowledgements (p. xxiii)
• Introduction (p. 1)
• Structure of the book (p. 2)
• 1 The changing nature of international business (p. 5)
• Objectives (p. 5)
• Introduction (p. 5)
• Growth of large firms (p. 5)
• Deregulation and the internationalisation process (p. 5)
• The impact of technology (p. 8)
• Types of growth (p. 9)
• Joint ventures (p. 11)
• Strategic alliances (p. 12)
• Mergers and acquisitions in Europe (p. 12)
• Main targeted regions (p. 15)
• The shrinking boundaries of the firm (p. 18)
• The business environment in Europe (p. 21)
• Europe's best? (p. 26)
• Conclusion (p. 29)
• Questions (p. 30)
• Note (p. 30)
• References (p. 31)
• 2 International trade (p. 32)
• Objectives (p. 32)
• Introduction (p. 32)
• Mercantilism (p. 32)
• Absolute advantage (p. 33)
• Comparative advantage (p. 34)
• An empirical study of comparative advantage (p. 37)
• Criticisms of the comparative advantage theory (p. 38)
• The Heckscher-Ohlin theorem (p. 39)
• The Leontief paradox (p. 39)
• World trade flows (p. 41)
• Increasing returns and imperfect competition (p. 45)
• Linder's preference similarity hypothesis (p. 46)
• Posner's technological gap theory (p. 47)
• Vernon's product cycle model (p. 47)
• Porter's competitive advantage theory and Porter's diamond (p. 48)
• Fair and ethical trade (p. 52)
• Conclusion (p. 55)
• Questions (p. 55)
• Notes (p. 56)
• References (p. 57)
• 3 The protection of trade (p. 58)
• Objectives (p. 58)
• Introduction (p. 58)
• Arguments for protectionism (p. 58)
• Infant industry (p. 58)
• Strategic argument (p. 59)
• Revenue reasons (p. 59)
• Unfair competition (p. 60)
• Terms of trade/optimal tariff argument (p. 61)
• Strategic trade policy (p. 61)
• The balance of trade effect (p. 61)
• Tariffs as a barrier to trade (p. 62)
• Non-tariff barriers to trade (p. 65)
• Quotas (p. 65)
• Voluntary export restraints (VERs) (p. 67)
• Production subsidies (p. 68)
• Export subsidies (p. 69)
• Discriminatory government procurement (p. 72)
• Multiple exchange rates (p. 74)
• Indirect non-tariff barriers (p. 74)
• Differences in indirect taxes (p. 76)
• Why there was a growth in non-tariff arrangements (p. 76)
• GATT (p. 76)
• The GATT rounds (p. 77)
• The Uruguay Round (p. 78)
• Since the Uruguay Round: the WTO in practice (p. 82)
• Ministerial meetings and the Doha Development Agenda (p. 82)
• Green trade issues (p. 84)
• Conclusion (p. 85)
• Questions (p. 86)
• Notes (p. 86)
• References (p. 86)
• 4 Economic integration (p. 89)
• Objectives (p. 89)
• Introduction (p. 89)
• Forms of economic integration (p. 89)
• The theory of customs unions (p. 91)
• Partial equilibrium theory of customs unions (p. 93)
• Conclusions from Viner's analysis (p. 94)
• The terms of trade effects (p. 95)
• Dynamic consequences of economic integration (p. 95)
• Empirical studies (p. 96)
• The adjustment costs of integration and implications for distribution (p. 98)
• Economic integration in practice (p. 99)
• A historical background (p. 99)
• Origins and nature of the European Union (p. 100)
• The development of the European Union (p. 101)
• The 1980s (p. 102)
• The Single European Market (p. 103)
• The Maastricht Treaty 1993/enlargement of the European Union (p. 105)
• The new EU constitution (p. 110)
• Economic integration outside the European Union (p. 111)
• NAFTA (p. 112)
• Mercosur (p. 113)
• FTAA (p. 114)
• ASEAN (p. 115)
• APEC (p. 115)
• Conclusion (p. 116)
• Questions (p. 116)
• Notes (p. 118)
• References (p. 118)
• Appendix 4.1 Regional trading blocs in the world (p. 121)
• 5 Foreign exchange markets (p. 124)
• Objectives (p. 124)
• Introduction (p. 124)
• The foreign exchange market (p. 125)
• How the exchange rate is measured (p. 125)
• Nominal exchange rates (p. 126)
• Effective exchange rates (EER) (p. 127)
• Real exchange rates (RER) (p. 127)
• Who buys and sells foreign currencies? (p. 129)
• Factors that determine foreign exchange movements (p. 132)
• Fixed and floating exchange rates (p. 132)
• Advantages and disadvantages of floating and fixed exchange rates (p. 135)
• Other types of exchange rate systems (p. 136)
• Adjustable peg system (p. 136)
• Target zones (p. 136)
• Currency boards (p. 137)
• Managed floating (sometimes called dirty floating) (p. 137)
• Theories of exchange rate determination (p. 137)
• Purchasing power parity (p. 137)
• Monetary models of the exchange rate (p. 141)
• Interest parity conditions (p. 141)
• The Dornbusch 'overshooting' model (p. 143)
• Portfolio balance and currency substitution (p. 144)
• Empirical challenges and new developments (p. 146)
• European monetary union (p. 146)
• Optimum currency areas and the rationale for a single currency (p. 146)
• The international role of the euro (p. 150)
• Conclusion (p. 153)
• Questions (p. 153)
• Notes (p. 155)
• References (p. 155)
• 6 Multinational corporations or MNCs (p. 157)
• Objectives (p. 157)
• Introduction (p. 157)
• What are MNCs? (p. 158)
• Why are MNCs important? (p. 159)
• The largest companies in the world (p. 160)
• MNC research (p. 163)
• The positive and negative effects of MNCs (p. 166)
• MNCs - a case for action? (p. 173)
• Globalisation and MNCs - is action possible? (p. 178)
• Conclusion (p. 183)
• Questions (p. 183)
• References (p. 184)
• 7 Foreign direct investment (p. 186)
• Objectives (p. 186)
• Introduction (p. 186)
• Definition (p. 186)
• Historical pattern of FDI (p. 187)
• Pre-First World War period (p. 187)
• The inter-war period (p. 189)
• The post-war period (p. 189)
• Recent developments (p. 190)
• Distribution and structure of FDI (p. 193)
• Theories of FDI (p. 194)
• The paradigm of ownership, location and internalisation (OLI) (p. 195)
• Traditional theories of FDI (p. 196)
• Capital arbitrage theory (p. 196)
• FDI and international trade theory (p. 199)
• Modern theories of FDI (p. 200)
• The Hymerian view (p. 200)
• The Uppsala internationalisation model (p. 200)
• Aliber's theory of FDI (p. 201)
• The product cycle model (p. 201)
• The internalisation theories of FDI (p. 202)
• The eclectic theory of FDI (p. 202)
• The radical (heterodox) explanations of FDI (p. 204)
• FDI in the European Union (p. 207)
• Inflows (p. 207)
• Outflows (p. 208)
• Distribution of FDI in the European Union (p. 210)
• Intra-EU FDI (p. 210)
• The sectoral distribution of FDI in the European Union (p. 213)
• The impact of FDI (p. 215)
• The effect on the labour market (p. 215)
• Technology transfer (p. 216)
• The effect on the capital market (p. 216)
• The effect on the balance of payments (p. 217)
• The effect on management styles (p. 218)
• Policy issues (p. 218)
• Conclusion (p. 219)
• Questions (p. 219)
• References (p. 220)
• 8 International and European capital markets (p. 223)
• Objectives (p. 223)
• Introduction (p. 223)
• Historical developments (p. 224)
• Financial regulation (p. 227)
• Proposals for a single European financial market (p. 231)
• Recent developments in European financial policy (p. 234)
• Measuring financial integration (p. 236)
• The European money markets (p. 237)
• The European bond markets (p. 237)
• The European credit market (p. 240)
• The European equity markets (p. 244)
• Conclusion (p. 247)
• Questions (p. 247)
• Note (p. 248)
• References (p. 249)
• 9 Labour markets (p. 251)
• Objectives (p. 251)
• EU and international/global labour markets (p. 251)
• The Social Charter (p. 254)
• Flexible labour markets (p. 255)
• Occupational mobility (p. 257)
• Skills level and mobility (p. 258)
• Regional impact of skills (p. 258)
• Demographic change and its impact on labour markets (p. 259)
• Skills needs and skill deficiencies of industry (p. 262)
• Labour costs and business location (p. 266)
• Wages and other labour costs (p. 268)
• Corporate pay (p. 270)
• Other labour costs (p. 272)
• Productivity in European and international labour markets (p. 272)
• Conclusion (p. 276)
• Questions (p. 277)
• References (p. 278)
• 10 Industry policy and competition policy (p. 280)
• Objectives (p. 280)
• Introduction (p. 280)
• IP in the EU context (p. 281)
• What is IP? (p. 282)
• The theory behind, and the rationale for, IP (p. 283)
• IP in the United Kingdom (p. 285)
• IP in the European Union (p. 286)
• Public procurement (p. 286)
• State aid (p. 288)
• State aid: the legal framework (p. 289)
• Procedures for supervision of state aid (p. 290)
• What is meant by CP? (p. 291)
• The objectives of CP (p. 293)
• The purpose of EU CP (p. 295)
• The practice of EU CP (p. 297)
• Article 81 (p. 297)
• Article 82 (p. 301)
• Mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures (p. 305)
• The rationale for mergers and joint ventures (p. 305)
• Public policy and mergers (p. 305)
• Mergers and EU CP (p. 306)
• Joint ventures (p. 308)
• Conclusion (p. 309)
• Questions (p. 310)
• Note (p. 311)
• References (p. 311)
• 11 EU policy and its impact on business: regional, transport and environmental policy (p. 314)
• Objectives (p. 314)
• Introduction (p. 314)
• Regional policy (p. 314)
• Theories behind the need for regional policy (p. 314)
• The EU states' approach to regional policy (p. 318)
• Comparing the EU regional approaches (p. 319)
• Assessing regional policy at the member state level (p. 320)
• Changes in EU regional policy over the past 20 years (p. 321)
• Assessing the performance of regional policy (p. 325)
• Assessing cohesion policies (p. 325)
• Proposals for a regional policy after 2006 (p. 327)
• The revised cohesion policy for 2006-13 (p. 327)
• EU environmental policy (p. 329)
• Water (p. 331)
• Waste (p. 331)
• Climate change (p. 332)
• Environment standards (p. 335)
• How can the European Union achieve its policy of protecting the environment? (p. 336)
• The environment and trade (p. 337)
• Transport policy (p. 338)
• Road haulage (p. 339)
• The air transport and passenger industry (p. 341)
• Conclusion (p. 343)
• Questions (p. 344)
• References (p. 345)
• 12 Small business and EU policy (p. 346)
• Objectives (p. 346)
• Introduction (p. 346)
• Size and structure of European SMEs (p. 347)
• The country level (p. 348)
• SMEs and industrial sectors (p. 348)
• SMEs in the enlarged Europe (p. 349)
• SMEs in the United States and Japan (p. 349)
• Changes in the performance of SMEs (p. 350)
• Changes in performance across European countries (p. 352)
• Internationalisation and SMEs (p. 353)
• The level of internationalisation within European countries (p. 354)
• Size and internationalisation (p. 355)
• The development of alliances and networks (p. 356)
• Towards a theory of SME internationalisation (p. 357)
• Born globals (p. 358)
• The holistic approach to internationalisation (p. 358)
• Psychic distance research (p. 359)
• Network theory (p. 359)
• The drivers of internationalisation among SMEs (p. 359)
• Push or pull factors (p. 359)
• Barriers to exporting by SMEs (p. 360)
• The role of the Internet (p. 361)
• Shortages of capital as a barrier (p. 361)
• Trade barriers (p. 362)
• European policy towards SMEs (p. 362)
• Other policy measures affecting SMEs (p. 362)
• Direct policy measures affecting SMEs (p. 364)
• SMEs and EU enlargement (p. 365)
• Conclusion (p. 368)
• Questions (p. 368)
• References (p. 369)
• 13 Conclusion (p. 372)
• Enlargement of the European Union (p. 372)
• Depth of integration (p. 373)
• Internal structure (p. 374)
• Changes in the global market (p. 374)
• Demographics (p. 375)
• Technology and innovation (p. 375)
• Environment (p. 376)
• Note (p. 377)
• References (p. 377)
• Glossary (p. 378)
• Index (p. 385)