Business Environment In Countries Research Articles

Enablers of new business density: a comparison between developed and developing countries using deep learning and explainable AI

PurposeNew business density (NBD) is the ratio of the number of newly registered liability corporations to the working-age population per year. NBD is critical to assessing a country's business environment. The present work endeavors to discover and gauge the contribution of 28 potential socio-economic enablers of NBD for 2006–2021 across developed and developing economies separately and to make a comparative assessment between those two regions.Design/methodology/approachUsing World Bank data, the study first performs exploratory data analysis (EDA). Then, it deploys a deep learning (DL)-based regression framework by utilizing a deep neural network (DNN) to perform predictive modeling of NBD for developed and developing nations. Subsequently, we use two explainable artificial intelligence (XAI) techniques, Shapley values and a partial dependence plot, to unveil the influence patterns of chosen enablers. Finally, the results from the DL method are validated with the explainable boosting machine (EBM) method.FindingsThis research analyzes the role of 28 potential socio-economic enablers of NBD in developed and developing countries. This research finds that the NBD in developed countries is predominantly governed by the contribution of manufacturing and service sectors to GDP. In contrast, the propensity for research and development and ease of doing business control the NBD of developing nations. The research findings also indicate four common enablers – business disclosure, ease of doing business, employment in industry and startup procedures for developed and developing countries.Practical implicationsNBD is directly linked to any nation's economic affairs. Therefore, assessing the NBD enablers is of paramount significance for channelizing capital for new business formation. It will guide investment firms and entrepreneurs in discovering the factors that significantly impact the NBD dynamics across different regions of the globe. Entrepreneurs fraught with inevitable market uncertainties while developing a new idea into a successful new business can momentously benefit from the awareness of crucial NBD enablers, which can serve as a basis for business risk assessment.Originality/valueDL-based regression framework simultaneously caters to successful predictive modeling and model explanation for practical insights about NBD at the global level. It overcomes the limitations in the present literature that assume the NBD is country- and industry-specific, and factors of the NBD cannot be generalized globally. With DL-based regression and XAI methods, we prove our research hypothesis that NBD can be effectively assessed and compared with the help of global macro-level indicators. This research justifies the robustness of the findings by using the socio-economic data from the renowned data repository of the World Bank and by implementing the DL modeling with validation through the EBM method.

Assessment of Impact of Country Business Ranking on Economi c Development: An Empirical Analysis

Purpose: The World Bank's “Ease of Doing Business” index, among other business rankings, can help a country's economic progress by attracting foreign investments, encouraging entrepreneurship, and improving the business climate. Superior rankings indicate an optimised environment for business activities, which could boost investments, job opportunities, and overall economic growth. The research is conducted to assess the impact of a country's business ranking on economic development. Design/methodology/approach: The Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) method was used to assess the impact of a country's business ranking on its economic trajectory. The official World Bank report was used to obtain data from 2015 to 2021. Panel data of Global Innovation Ranking, Ease of Doing Business Ranking, and Business Freedom Ranking from 2016 to 2021 is the basis of this study. The researcher has used a conceptual framework to establish and understand the dependence among the dependent and independent variables. For measuring statistical association, the researcher has used structural equation modelling and path diagram along with correlation and regression analysis. The correlation has been used to assess their association, while the researcher has used regression to determine the impact of country business ranking. Findings: The investigator investigated the impact of India's standings in the Global Innovation Ranking, Ease of Doing Business Ranking, and Business Freedom Ranking on its Economic Development, specifically GDP, in this study. The study's findings show that India's business rankings have a significant impact on its economic development. Such global business rankings provide critical data points for policymakers, businesses, and investors to make informed decisions, thereby promoting economic growth. Furthermore, the study examined the effects of GDP growth on the combustion of fossil fuels, as measured in million tonnes, emphasising the environmental consequences of economic expansion. Research limitations/implications: It's imperative to note that this is just an estimate, and the actual relationship between the variables in the population may differ from this estimate. The estimate is based on the sample data used to fit the model and may not accurately reflect the true relationship in the population. Further analysis and interpretation of the model's goodness of fit and consideration of other factors, such as outliers or omitted variables, are essential to fully apprehend the relationship between “GIR” and the dependent variable. The results of global business rankings can help policymakers identify areas for improvement in their country's business environment. By focusing on the areas where their country is lagging behind, they can develop policies and initiatives to attract more investment, create a more favourable business environment, and support economic growth. Businesses can use the results of global rankings to evaluate potential locations for expansion or investment. It can provide insights into the ease of starting and running a business, access to credit, property rights protection, and other important factors to businesses. Investors can also use the results of global rankings to make informed decisions about where increased investment and economic growth. Global business rankings generally provide valuable information that policymakers, businesses, and investors can use to make informed decisions and support economic development. Originality/value: I hereby attest that the research paper I have submitted is the result of my own independent and unique labor. All of the sources from which the thoughts and passages were derived have been properly credited. The work has not been submitted for publication anywhere and is devoid of any instances of plagiarism.

How business environment of countries along the Belt and Road impacts China’s OFDI efficiency: a stochastic frontier gravity model approach

The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) provides a new opportunity for the continued deepening of economic and trade cooperation between China and countries along the BRI route. However, different business environments among countries have led to the problem of a low and uneven distribution of China’s overall trade and investment efficiency in the countries along the route. Using the stochastic frontier gravity model, this study evaluates the efficiency of China’s outward foreign direct investment (OFDI) based on the data of 47 countries along the Belt and Road route from 2013 to 2019. The empirical results indicate that the efficiency level of China’s OFDI in countries located along the Belt and Road route is 43.39%, which suggests a regional imbalance. In terms of business environment factors, regulatory governance, civic discourse, government accountability, and regulatory quality in host countries have a positive impact on China’s OFDI. The positive effects of the BRI have enabled Chinese enterprises to better face factors such as political instability, corruption and imperfections in the legal system when investing abroad. The findings and suggestions could help the governments and enterprises of the countries along the route improve the business environment in a more targeted manner, enhance the space for economic and trade cooperation, and promote the common development of the countries along the route.

REVIEW OF IT INNOVATIONS, DATA ANALYTICS, AND GOVERNANCE IN NIGERIAN ENTERPRISES

This scholarly investigation delves into the evolving realm of Information Technology (IT) innovations and data analytics within Nigerian enterprises, focusing on their transformative impact, governance challenges, and the strategic implications for business practices. Set against the backdrop of Nigeria's dynamic economic landscape, the study aims to unravel the complexities and potential of IT and data analytics in reshaping the country's business environment. The research adopts a review approach to study traverse various domains, including the historical evolution of IT, the transformative role of data analytics in decision-making, governance hurdles in the IT sector, and compliance issues within Nigerian IT practices. The findings reveal a significant IT and data analytics evolution, marked by increased adoption and integration into business operations. However, challenges such as infrastructural inadequacies, skill gaps, and regulatory complexities emerge as significant barriers. The study concludes that for Nigerian enterprises to fully leverage IT innovations, a robust governance framework, strategic alignment of IT practices, and investment in technology and skills development are imperative. Recommendations include fostering a culture of innovation, adaptability, and compliance to navigate the digital landscape effectively. The study serves as a comprehensive guide for businesses, policymakers, and stakeholders in the Nigerian IT sector, offering insights for leveraging IT innovations for sustainable growth and development.
 Keywords: IT Innovations, Data Analytics, Nigerian Enterprises, Governance Challenges, Strategic Implications, Digital Transformation.

Administrative law reforms for enhancing business environment in Saudi Arabia

The economic landscape of Saudi Arabia has undergone significant changes in recent years, largely due to various administrative law reforms. The aim of this research paper is to examine the administrative law reforms in Saudi Arabia and their impact on the country's business environment. Based on the findings, the law reforms made in Saudi Arabia include initiating businesses, safeguarding the interests of minority investors, facilitating trade, ensuring contract enforcement, providing access to electricity, facilitating credit acquisition, granting construction permits, and resolving insolvency. Saudi Arabia should take steps to raise public awareness about corruption and establish more robust laws to safeguard whistleblowers. The country should also allocate resources to training programs and establish partnerships with advanced, specialized courts. Creating entrepreneurship programs and workshops to promote an entrepreneurial mindset in schools and the community is crucial. Saudi Arabia can create a favorable environment for economic growth and development by implementing these measures.

National support and legislative change in the business environment of V4 countries: Business sectors view

Research background: The business environment in the countries of Central Europe is in turbulent times due to the presence of crisis phenomena and its related consequences. Support for business entities at the national level in the form of legislative changes plays an important role in the growth of the business environment of each country. Countries are trying to approach measures taking into account the specifics of each individual business sector. Purpose of the article: The purpose of the article is to compare the subjective attitudes of the business entity owners on the perception of support at the national level and their legislative changes with respect to the industry in which they do business. The subjects of the assessment are following business sectors: production, trade, services, and construction. Methods: Data collection was performed in December 2022 and January 2023 using a questionnaire. The test sample of respondents consisted of 1090 enterprises operating in the business environment of the Visegrad Group countries. Statistical hypotheses were evaluated using parametric methods. The purpose of the verification was to determine the effect of factors such as business environment and the country of operation of the business entity on selected statements regarding legal risk. Findings & Value added: The business sector and the country of business are significant factors that effect the assessment of national support and legislative changes. Enterprises operating in the service sector do agree to a greater extent that the business environment is over-regulated. Enterprises operating in the service and manufacturing sectors are the least likely to agree that the conditions for doing business in their country have improved over the past five years. Enterprises in trade and construction do not perceive the negative impact of frequent legislative changes on the business as much as enterprises in manufacturing and services. Slovak and Czech entrepreneurs perceive the negative impact of frequent legislative changes and lower support from national institutions during crisis phenomena significantly more than Hungarian and Polish entrepreneurs. Czech entrepreneurs perceive that the business environment is overregulated the most intensively among the V4 countries.

Impact of host country's business environment on China's OFDI in Belt and Road countries: Based on the perspective of investment motives

Impact of host country's business environment on China's OFDI in Belt and Road countries: Based on the perspective of investment motives

Exploring network-based dependencies between country-level sustainability and business risks

The concept of sustainability has gained prominence in the global discourse, with increasing recognition of its impact on business risk. By integrating sustainability considerations into their strategies and operations, national policymakers and businesses can mitigate business risks and contribute to national sustainability goals. The objective of this study is to explore dependencies among the risks associated with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), introduced by the United Nations in 2015, and country-level business risk. In particular, this study aims to identify critical SDGs that can influence business risk based on the two extreme performance states (i.e., best and worst scenarios) of individual SDGs. A data-driven Bayesian Belief Network model is developed using two datasets on country-level sustainability performance and business risk assessment. On the one hand, ‘quality education’, ‘no poverty’, ‘affordable and clean energy’ and ‘sustainable cities and communities’ are identified as the most critical SDGs based on the negative impact of their associated risks on business risk. On the other hand, low risk (high performance) associated with the ‘peace, justice and strong institutions’, ‘life on land’ and ‘industry, innovation and infrastructure’ SDGs can reduce business risk. Strong dependencies are found between individual SDG risks and business risk, implying policymakers need to consider the implications of their sustainability initiatives on the risks and uncertainties surrounding their country's business environment.

Управлінські рішення в умовах невизначеності міжнародного бізнес-середовища

The article is aimed at developing a methodical approach to assessing the favorability of the business environment in the process of making managerial decisions under conditions of uncertainty. The necessity of making sound managerial decisions when an enterprise carries out international activities is proved. It is noted that from the point of view of studying the conditions of international business activity, the concept of uncertainty characterizes a situation in which there is no reliable information about the possible state and trends in the factors of the business environment of the host country. A thorough analysis of the current state and trends in the transformation of business environment factors in foreign markets contributes to minimizing uncertainty. It is underlined that the use of such common global analytical systems for rating economic processes as the Global Competitiveness Index, the Ease of Doing Business Index and the Index of Countries’ Involvement in International Trade to assess the business environment is currently impossible. The author proposes to use the KOF Globalization Index, the Index of Economic Freedom, the Global Innovation Index, and the Human Development Index, which are the result of global studies of the business environment of countries. The general characteristics of each of the indices are provided, development trends are determined, the five leading countries and Ukraine’s positions are presented according to the results of the published ratings for 2022–2023. To assess the country’s favorability in carrying out international activities in terms of uncertainty and instability of its business environment, an approach to calculating the aggregated indicator based on indicators of the KOF Globalisation Index, the Index of Economic Freedom, the Global Innovation Index, the Human Development Index, combined by the PEST analysis methodology, has been developed. The use of the proposed methodological approach will help to increase the thoroughness of managerial decision-making in the implementation of international activities by the enterprise.

The government, private firms, and dual-track private sector development: China's experience in two crucial decades

A key to understand the evolution of an economy is the property rights institution and the contracting institution that the government set up to shape the business environment of private firms. Focusing on China during its crucial two decades of transition (from the early 1990s to the early 2010s), this paper documents how the country's business environment and the characteristics of entrepreneurs evolved, along with the role played by local governments. Relying on multiple comprehensive data sets, the paper shows that many aspects of local business environments improved: infrastructure, development of the court system, and access to external finance. Meanwhile, the share of politically connected private firms remained large, and their advantage in accessing key resources increased. Under this dual-track private sector development, private firms became larger and more innovative and adopted more formal corporate governance mechanisms. Entrepreneurs became better educated, with more diverse sectoral experiences. Market competition increased over time, especially after China's World Trade Organization entry. The paper offers suggestive evidence that this dual track development had negative consequences, such as a lower tendency to innovate by politically connected firms.

Problems of shaping the business environment in countries with economies in transition: aspects of anticorruption

Personnel is the main resource, potential, the basis for the formation of the entire state administration apparatus, and therefore play an important role. The quality of reforms, the quality of the public administration system, as well as the formation of a positive image of the state depend on the quality, professionalism, continuous development of personnel and human resources. The purpose of the article is to analyze the activities of the state in the context of protecting personnel security, depending on the quality of their regulation and control of corruption in the business environment. The research is based on theories of human resources’ management in business environment development institutions and theories of public administration, which make it possible to form new knowledge about the integration of management control concepts into the practice of human resources’ management. The results of the research can be used in public authorities. The formed regression equation of public administration efficiency is estimated depending on the quality of the regulatory environment and the level of the fight against corruption in countries with economies in transition with a high level of adequacy, and a corresponding analysis is carried out. The research takes place in the field of public administration and is aimed at protecting the business environment from the corruption component by developing personnel security. The author's contribution consists in a comprehensive analysis and systematization of data from various sources of information. In the course of the study, the method of theoretical research and systematization was used, which made it possible to form data in the most convenient way and draw appropriate conclusions.

An examination of the influence of business environments on the attraction of globally mobile self-initiated expatriates

PurposeThis study examines which dimensions of a business environment are most important for attracting globally mobile self-initiated expatriates to a country. The authors use secondary data from the World Bank, the World Economic Forum, IMD and the World Population Review to test eight hypotheses involving six macro-contextual factors that prior studies suggest attract internationally mobile skilled professionals, such as self-initiated expatriates, to a country's business environment. The macro-contextual factors examined are socio-cultural, economic, natural, ecological, technological clusters and legal and regulatory.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use secondary data from the World Bank, IMD, World Population Report and the World Economic Forum to test eight hypotheses concerning macro-contextual factors that attract self-initiated expatriates to a country's business environment.FindingsThe study finds that factors such as the ease of hiring foreign labor, the use of English, macroeconomic stability, the diversity of the workforce and the quality of life in a country positively influence the attractiveness of its business environment to self-initiated expatriates. The study also finds that a business environment's socio-cultural, natural, economic and legal and regulatory macro-contextual attributes make it attractive to self-initiated expatriates.Originality/valueTo reduce common source bias, the authors use secondary data from four sources to examine which of six macro-contextual factors make a sample of 63 national business environments attractive to self-initiated expatriates. This study is one of the few to examine the impact of business environments on global mobility.

Business Environment in Emerging Market Countries

The business environment of a country or region is an important measure of its economic soft power and an indicator of the strength of its governance. A good business environment attracts foreign investment, which emerging market countries in structural transformation are most concerned about. This article calculates and ranks the business environment index of the 30 emerging market countries (E30). It assesses the trend of the overall business environment and the contributing factors and conducts an empirical analysis of how business environment in these countries affects their economic development. The study shows that the business environment of the E30 countries is closely related to their economic development, albeit with prominent regional differences. Additionally, the quality of business environment is closely related to the strength of government regulation. In the last 5 years, the business environment of the E30 countries has improved in general, and closed the gap with the OECD countries, with Asian countries demonstrating the most conspicuous improvement. Empirical results show that the overall score of the business environment has a significantly positive effect on economic development. Lastly, based on a systematic analysis of the business environment of the E30 countries, the article summarizes the findings and makes projections about future development.

ЕКОНОМІЧНИЙ МЕХАНІЗМ РЕГУЛЮВАННЯ МІГРАЦІЇ БІЗНЕСУ ТА ІНТЕЛЕКТУАЛЬНОЇ ВЛАСНОСТІ

Introduction. In the context of globalization, there is an intensification of migration of human resources, business, and intellectual property, which has both positive and negative effects on the economic development of the country. To minimize the negative consequences and prevent threats, it is necessary to develop an economic mechanism for regulating business migration in terms of creating favourable conditions for starting and running a business, eliminating the monopolization of economic sectors and the development of healthy competition. Purpose. The purpose of the article is to form a mechanism for regulating the migration of business and intellectual property to achieve sustainable development of the national economy. Results. It is outlined that the development of external migration processes in the migration of busi-ness and related tangible and intangible assets, intellectual property, business technologies is quite critical from the standpoint of influencing the economic security of the state. The intensification of business migration processes is mainly due, firstly, to disparities in the business environment of countries; secondly, systemic threats to the economic security of doing business in the country-the donor of business migration; thirdly, the extensive experience of successful positive business practices in the country-the recipient of business migration. Inadequate attention to the spread of business and intellectual property migration leads to weakening the potential of business activity, reducing competition, stagnation of recovery processes, deactivation of start-ups, deformation of the internal labour market, increasing the number of practices of stationary migration and resettlement, narrowing the creative sector components of the national economy competitiveness. Conclusions. The state policy of migration management in terms of ensuring the development of the national economy requires the formation of a new economic mechanism for managing business migration to preserve and increase the entrepreneurial capital of Ukraine. Keywords: business migration, state policy, national economy, intellectual property, economic mechanism, incentives, entrepreneurial capital.

International experience of business internationalization in the knowledge economy

Business global competitiveness formation and its entry into international markets are necessary for achieving sustainable economic development. Features of the business environment in a knowledge economy are the development and diffusion of innovations. Doing business internationalization requires the appropriate institutions development, depending on environmental factors, that may have different functions and use a wide range of government support tools. The world top economies built national strategies to ensure the internationalization of business processes. It is determined that state institutions can use a wide range of internationalization promoting tools. In particular: clustering policies for stimulating the development of the environment conducive to innovation as a source of competitiveness in international markets; development of the country's business environment aimed at attracting foreign venture capital to finance startups; creating conditions for increasing the number of the country business residents by removing entry barriers, including stimulating the development of e-commerce; promoting networking between national and international businesses. Clusters are considered to be the accelerators of economic cooperation for innovative product promotion. These are the focus of the world's leading countries policies (EU, Japan, and South Korea). The combination within the Finnish clusters of SMEs and TNCs allows accelerating the processes of business internationalization in the knowledge economy. The national institutional sector of most EU countries consists of ministries, GO or NGO, whose jurisdiction includes stimulating the development of innovative firms and foreign economic activity. In economies with a high level of protectionism (Japan, China, South Korea), a significant role passes to the state ministries, which have developed a wide range of tools for the state strategic priorities implementation. The business internationalization tools of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy of South Korea in comparison with the Ukrainian experience are detailed.

EVALUATION OF THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT OF PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES OF THE BELT AND ROAD INITIATIVE

As an important indicator for measuring the quality of business environment of different countries, ease of doing business (EDB) issued by the World Bank (WB) provides an important reference for investors in making decisions on transnational investment. The calculation method for EDB issued by the WB is improved using a technique for order preference by similarity to an ideal solution (TOPSIS) method based on Mahalanobis distance. Based on various indicator data in 2019, business environments in 121 countries participating in “the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)” were empirically analysed and compared through such models. The result showed that TOPSIS method based on Mahalanobis distance can more fully utilise information and take the effect of negative ideal points into account. Therefore, compared with ranking method by the WB, TOPSIS method based on Mahalanobis distance is more applicable for ranking BRI countries. The ranking results indicated significant geographical characteristics. The EDB rankings obtained through the WB overestimate the business environments of countries in Central and Eastern Europe while underestimate those in Southeast Asia, Africa, etc.

An empirical study of the audit expectation gap in yemen and how to narrow the gap

A survey research was conducted on a sample of 288 auditors and users of financial statements. Of the 288 questionnaires distributed, 75.69% were returned and analyzed. The results suggested the existence of wide audit expectation gap between the two groups, with respect to auditors’ performance. Hence it is suggested that in order to improve the degree of accounting profession and auditing practices in Yemen, authorities may consider adapting accounting and auditing standards, that are suitable to the country's business environment. These standards will provide guidance and rules for all related parties, which have interest and concern, in the accounting and auditing profession. This study adds evidence to the important debate about audit expectation gap, from a region that is relatively under researched.

Management of intercultural communications for an organization leading an international activity

The necessity to establish intercultural communications for organizations is an aspect of globalization. It is important for an organization with international contacts to manage cross-cultural communications for control of the situation. The authors suggest an approach to study particularities of a country business environment and demonstrate examples of implementing it into practice.

Perspectivas de las spin-off académicas, como modelo de emprendimiento en las universidades colombianas

Objetivo: proponer un esquema en el que se detalle los componentes ideales para la generación de una spin-off académica en Colombia. Método: se revisaron fuentes primarias y secundarias de información. Las primeras constaron de una consulta por medio de un cuestionario digital y telefónico que aportó información relacionada con cada una de las spin-off de las universidades que atendieron el llamado de la investigación, las segundas fueron, en esencia, documentos encontrados en las bases de datos académicas consultadas. Resultados: el esquema de spin-off propuesto a partir de la investigación puede ser replicado en todas las universidades del país. Para ello deben promoverse políticas internas de emprendimiento y favorecer un entorno que permita la investigación universitaria en las facultades de administración con miras hacia una transdisciplinariedad. Discusiones: aun cuando se plantea que las spin-off son modelos de desarrollo empresarial a partir de la investigación, se propone la búsqueda de generación de este tipo de organizaciones que permitan solventar las necesidades de la sociedad en el marco de la economía creativa y los modelos de economía colaborativa. Conclusiones: la spin-off como figura de generación de empresa es productiva y necesaria para el entorno del país y las políticas de fomento de Colciencias y de cada universidad sirven como semillero para este propósito. Además, el papel que la investigación juega es determinante dado que este tipo de organización deviene de los impulsos investigativos de las universidades en diferentes áreas del conocimiento.

Meta description of female business engagement scenarios

This article contains a meta-analysis of representations of the main models of recruiting women into the field of professional business in European, English language and Russian periodical press. The aim of this study is to systemize the theoretical-conceptual and practical aspects of reproducing certain means of recruitment into the economic elite, as well as the restrictions which women face when choosing a professional development trajectory. A meta-description of the career paths of those women who established themselves in the entrepreneurial field allows for reconstructing women’s scenarios of choosing and forwarding their career in business, as well as for constructing a typology of narrative strategies which affect women’s choices in professional development trajectories in the context of different countries. The empirical basis for this study consists of full-text articles from periodical and serial publications in leading foreign and domestic academic journals. Using critical discourse analysis of articles and open data allows for reconstructing the significance of gender aspects when it comes to choosing a career in business, as well as for tracing the influence of the context of developing female entrepreneurship on recruitment mechanisms in various countries. The results of the empirical study show that the representation of mechanisms for recruiting women into the professional environment is differentiated in different ways in English language and Russian periodic press. Peculiarities inherent to different countries are one of the factors which affect the development of business trajectories specific to certain regions. In Europe a discourse-system education prevails as the most adequate means for establishing oneself in the economic field. Eastern Asian countries mostly focus on the immigration process. In Russia we see gender labeled strategies in leadership positions. The manner in which recruitment mechanisms are pitched also varies: European articles mostly focus on positive trends and representing the discourse of successful business cases, while Russian periodical press concentrates on the obstacles and restrictions women have to deal with when choosing a career path. The narratives used for reconstructing the mechanisms for recruiting women into the realm of business, together with the terminology chosen by the authors of this article, confirm a positive representation of female entrepreneurship in Europe, an ambiguous nature of the business environment in countries of the Far East, and a certain degree of underdevelopment in Russia’s segment.