Cross-border Competition Research Articles

Cross-border competition in the gasoline retail market: Impact of proximity at the German-Polish border

In this article, I analyze how persistently lower gasoline prices in Poland affect the prices set in the German border region. Based on a complete dataset of German gasoline prices and an assessment of driving distances between gasoline stations, I estimate the impact of one additional kilometer of distance to the nearest Polish competitor on the price charged by German gasoline stations. Following the fixed effects filtered estimator approach proposed by Pesaran and Zhou (2018) and controlling for various station characteristics, I find no evidence that German gasoline stations enter price competition with their Polish counterparts. My descriptive analysis of gasoline station infrastructure in the German border region reveals increasingly sparse gasoline station density when approaching the Polish border, along with an increasing share of premium brands. These results may reflect the effect of substantially lower taxes in Poland, discouraging German gasoline stations from locating near the border and effectively ruling out cross-border price competition. Although indirect, my findings suggest the presence of fuel tourism.

A Commentary on the Jurisdictional Challenges in the Rand- Dollar Exchange Manipulation "Cartel": Competition Commission of South Africa v Bank of America Merrill Lynch International Designated Activity Company [2023] ZACT 26 (30 March 2023)

Cartels are the most egregious of competition law transgressions, because they entail a concerted effort on the part of cartel members to deliberately distort the market through price fixing, bid rigging, market allocation and constraining the supply of goods and services. Despite efforts by national competition authorities in various countries to combat cartelism, cartels have proved to have long tentacles, often extending beyond borders and morphing into "cross-border cartels". This contribution discusses one of the major challenges that cross-border cartels poses to competition authorities, that of prosecutorial and penal jurisdiction. The note focusses on the "banking cartel" that has been and still is the subject of contentious litigation. In March 2023 the Competition Tribunal (the Tribunal) handed down judgment in the matter of the Competition Commission of South Africa v Bank of America Merrill Lynch International Designated Activity Company [2023] ZACT 26 (30 March 2023). There were several questions in the matter, including the jurisdiction of the South African competition authorities to investigate and prosecute firms not incorporated or operating in South Africa (pure peregrini). The Competition Commission (the Commission) had initiated proceedings in the Tribunal against a host of banks for alleged cartel conduct, and some of the respondent banks raised objections and exceptions relating to the jurisdiction of the South African competition authorities. The note observes that while national competition authorities may have prosecutorial jurisdiction against cross-border cartels, there is still a challenge in enforcing an order where cartels are non-resident in the country. The contribution also notes potential challenges to cartel enforcement on the African continent in light of the establishment of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). Due to the removal of various trade barriers, there is likely to be a rise in cross-border competition issues, including cross-border mergers and cross-border cartels. The note therefore discusses a pertinent issue, that of jurisdiction, which may well be a challenge within the AfCFTA.

Post-Globalisation Development Of Competition Law: Challenges & Opportunities

Competition law is an essential aspect of modern regulatory frameworks that aim to promote fair competition, prevent monopolistic practices, and safeguard consumer interests within markets. Globalisation has brought forth new challenges and opportunities in the post-globalisation era, necessitating a recalibration of competition enforcement mechanisms to address transnational anti-competitive practices. The liberalisation of trade and investment regimes under globalisation has also raised concerns about cross-border conspiracy and abuse of dominance. In response, competition authorities have adopted more collaborative approaches to enforcement and grappled with intricate jurisdictional issues. The rise of digitalisation and e-commerce, integral components of globalisation, has presented new competition challenges, such as platform monopolies and data-driven market manipulation. Regions have reassessed traditional competition paradigms to safeguard consumer welfare and promote innovation in the digital age. Moreover, globalisation has fostered a convergence of competition norms and principles, exemplified by the proliferation of international competition networks and the harmonisation of competition laws across jurisdictions. This underscores the imperative for greater cooperation and coordination among competition authorities to address cross-border competition concerns effectively. The evolution of competition law in the post-globalisation era embodies a compelling narrative of adaptation and recalibration in response to the transformative forces unleashed by globalisation. This evolution unfolds against the backdrop of a burgeoning recognition of the interconnectedness of markets and the imperative for harmonised regulatory responses to address cross-border competition challenges effectively. However, several challenges persist in the post-globalisation landscape, including navigating jurisdictional conflicts, addressing enforcement gaps in digital markets, combating transnational anti-competition ve practices, and balancing competition objectives with broader policy goals. These challenges require nuanced and innovative regulatory solutions that prioritise consumer welfare and promote fair competition. Despite the challenges, the post-globalisation era offers significant opportunities for competition law frameworks worldwide. By embracing collaborative approaches, leveraging technological innovation, and fostering international cooperation, we can enhance the effectiveness of competition law frameworks. This will promote competitive markets that foster innovation and safeguard consumer welfare. In conclusion, competition law regimes worldwide must adapt to post-globalisation reality and adopt policies that promote fair competition and innovation. By prioritising consumer welfare, embracing collaboration, leveraging technology, and fostering international cooperation, we can create a regulatory framework that fosters competitive markets and benefits consumers worldwide. Abstract Globalisation has transformed the world economy by promoting the integration of economies and societies worldwide. This has led to the emergence of multinational corporations that wield significant market power across borders, necessitating a recalibration of competition enforcement mechanisms to address transnational anti-competitive practices. The liberalisation of trade and investment regimes under globalisation has also raised concerns about cross-border collusion and abuse of dominance. Competition authorities have responded by adopting more collaborative approaches to enforcement and grappling with intricate jurisdictional issues. The rise of digitalisation and e-commerce, integral components of globalisation, has presented new competition challenges, such as platform monopolies and data-driven market manipulation. This has prompted regulators to reassess traditional competition paradigms to safeguard consumer welfare and promote innovation in the digital age. Furthermore, globalisation has fostered a convergence of competition norms and principles, exemplified by the proliferation of international competition networks and the harmonisation of competition laws across jurisdictions. This underscores the imperative for greater cooperation and coordination among competition authorities to address cross-border competition concerns effectively. The evolution of competition law in the post-globalisation era embodies a compelling narrative of adaptation and recalibration in response to the transformative forces unleashed by globalisation. This evolution unfolds against the backdrop of a burgeoning recognition of the interconnectedness of markets and the imperative for harmonised regulatory responses to address cross-border competition challenges effectively. The post-globalisation landscape presents many challenges and opportunities for competition law regimes worldwide. Challenges include navigating jurisdictional conflicts, addressing enforcement gaps in digital markets, combating transnational anti-competitive practices, and balancing competition objectives with broader policy goals. However, amidst these challenges lie significant opportunities. By embracing collaborative approaches, leveraging technological innovation, and fostering international cooperation, we can enhance the effectiveness of competition law frameworks. This will promote competitive markets that foster innovation and safeguard consumer welfare.

How does digital transformation affect the profitability of rural commercial banks?

Under the impact of the business sinking of large commercial banks and the cross-border competition of fintech companies, digital transformation has become a strategic priority for rural commercial banks. However, can digital transformation improve the profitability of rural commercial banks (PORCB)? This aspect has not been thoroughly examined in academic literature. This study utilizes unbalanced panel data from 54 Chinese rural commercial banks spanning from 2010 to 2021. The Peking University Commercial Bank Digital Transformation Index is employed to gauge the extent of digital transformation, while ordinary least squares estimation is used to examine its effect on the profitability of rural commercial banks and elucidate its underlying mechanisms. The findings show that: (1) Digital transformation can significantly improve the PORCB. (2) Digital transformation improves the PORCB by enhancing asset quality, operating efficiency and risk-taking. (3) The profitability-enhancing effect of digital transformation is more pronounced among rural commercial business banks with larger assets and lower equity concentration, as well as among state-owned rural commercial banks. This paper's findings represent a novel investigation into the correlation between digital transformation and the profitability of rural commercial banks. They offer a theoretical foundation and empirical evidence for future studies examining the economic implications of bank digital transformation, and offer valuable insights for enhancing the digitalisation of rural banks.

Sub National Collaboration In Increasing Global Competitiveness: Existence For Actors Cross-Border In Riau Islands

International activities by sub-state actors today do not only apply to developed and developed democratic states, but extend across borders between countries and regions. Along with the rapid wave of globalization, there is a demand for the role of sub-state actors to create various actions in international relations. This study empirically assesses the chance of sub-state actors in the study of international affairs by using inter-state local government collaboration as an expressive action that must be performed between countries, particularly across borders. The success of sub-state actors will not only be an effective tool to solve problems in crossing borders, but also to ensure sustainable living and economic development regionally in the future. This study discovered that improving the capabilities of sub-state actors in cross-border competition can improve the collaboration of local governments between countries in order to overcome various problems that arise. In addition, this research affirms the importance of cross-border local government collaboration as an action to realize the emancipation of the nation-state monopoly in public action to synchronize the interests of all actors in international cooperation. Keywords: Collaborative Sub-national, Cross-border , Sub-State Actors.

The enforcement of cross-border competition law claims in Asia-pacific and choice of forum agreements: private litigation or arbitration?

Abstract A private plaintiff may bring an action against a defendant for the infringement of competition law. In Western countries, it is widely accepted that parties can subject to choice of forum agreements claims seeking private law remedies based on competition law infringements. Accordingly, parties are free to refer those claims to a foreign court or arbitral tribunal for their determination. In contrast, it remains an open question in most Asia-Pacific jurisdictions whether competition-related claims are subject to choice of forum agreements (in particular, an arbitration agreement). If the answer is affirmative, a number of incidental questions will arise. For instance, in what kinds of competition-related claims and under what circumstances will choice of forum agreements be applicable? With focus on international arbitration, this article will look into recent developments around the globe and then propose how states in the Asia-Pacific region should approach those issues.

Task set and instructions influence the weight of figural priors: A psychophysical study with extremal edges and familiar configuration

In figure–ground organization, the figure is defined as a region that is both “shaped” and “nearer.” Here we test whether changes in task set and instructions can alter the outcome of the cross-border competition between figural priors that underlies figure assignment. Extremal edge (EE), a relative distance prior, has been established as a strong figural prior when the task is to report “which side is nearer?” In three experiments using bipartite stimuli, EEs competed and cooperated with familiar configuration, a shape prior for figure assignment in a “which side is shaped?” task.” Experiment 1 showed small but significant effects of familiar configuration for displays sketching upright familiar objects, although “shaped-side” responses were predominantly determined by EEs. In Experiment 2, instructions regarding the possibility of perceiving familiar shapes were added. Now, although EE remained the dominant prior, the figure was perceived on the familiar-configuration side of the border on a significantly larger percentage of trials across all display types. In Experiment 3, both task set (nearer/shaped) and the presence versus absence of instructions emphasizing that familiar objects might be present were manipulated within subjects. With familiarity thus “primed,” effects of task set emerged when EE and familiar configuration favored opposite sides as figure. Thus, changing instructions can modulate the weighing of figural priors for shape versus distance in figure assignment in a manner that interacts with task set. Moreover, we show that the influence of familiar parts emerges in participants without medial temporal lobe/ perirhinal cortex brain damage when instructions emphasize that familiar objects might be present.

Cross-border casino competition, Externalities and Optimal Tax Policy: A Unified Theory with Quantitative Analysis

We develop a framework on cross-border competition in markets for goods with negative externalities and provide evidence for optimal fiscal policy with a special focus on taxation. We build the case of two bordering casinos with city governments setting taxes to maximize social welfare. Analytically, we show that cross-border casino gambling makes aggregate casino demand more elastic. By calibrating the model to fit the Detroit-Windsor market, our welfare analysis shows that cross-border competition induces both cities to lower casino taxes, while the optimal tax mix features a shift from the casino revenue tax to the good and service surcharge on gambling in Detroit but a reversed shift in Windsor. We also find a casino buy-out deal to not be credible because Windsor's willingness to pay Detroit to ban Michigan casinos is far below Detroit's willingness to accept giving up its casinos.

Research on Credit Risk Assessment of Commercial Banks Based on KMV Model

Under the background of the new normal economy, the financing mode of local governments has changed, which has led to the emergence of a new pattern in China's financing market. Under this background, banks are facing the development pressure of subject diversification, financial disintermediation and cross-border competition. Commercial banks also actively promote the compliance development of emerging businesses such as financial market through the "comprehensive direction", so as to form a balanced and complementary development situation with traditional credit business. Therefore, this paper taking credit risk and related theories as the starting point, KMV model is selected to study domestic bank risk monitoring. Then, China Merchants Bank is taken as the research object, Shengjing Bank, Harbin Bank, Qingdao Bank and Chongqing Bank are taken as horizontal comparison. The data sampling time span is January to December 2018, as vertical comparison. Five banks were evaluated for credit risk, and it was found that the default distance of China Merchants Bank was relatively small and the default probability was relatively large. However, according to the calculation and analysis of KMV model, the default probability and return volatility of China Merchants Bank rank first among the five commercial banks, but at the same time, it maintains a high net profit margin of 129.3% in 2018, which shows that China Merchants Bank has a strong ability to control credit risk.

Exploring the Impact of Taxation on Immigration

Rules governing admission of immigrants to stable, developed countries vary widely among countries, yet wealthy immigrants with capital to invest and highly educated immigrants receive favorable admission decisions from immigration authorities more frequently and quickly than do conflict and economic refugees who will become part of a substantially fungible labor force. As preferred immigration destination countries limit the number of immigrants they will admit — the U.S. certainly does —, admissions are likely to follow a hierarchy based on expectations that certain immigrants will contribute significantly to the economy and welfare of the destination country in a manner that distinguishes them from other applicants for admission. Admission standards and practices also may favor some applicants over others on the basis of race, religion, and country of origin. Immigration has changed the face of many economically developed countries and introduced a diversity of cultures into formerly homogeneous mono-cultures. Conflict zones and weak economies drive immigration from those areas to wealthier and more stable areas. At the same time, high taxes and regulation fuel emigration from wealthy stable economies to lower tax, less regulated jurisdictions. Labor flight to lower tax jurisdictions historically has not been prevalent because rendition of services has been location dependent. However, the rapid growth of technology has made many industries independent of the location of their service providers. Cross-border competition for some labor has grown. While top scientists and medical professionals have been in demand since at least the early years of the 20th century, demand for technology expertise has accompanied growing international reliance on technology. The emergence of English as a common, international language has removed linguistic barriers to international commerce and individuals with technical training and expertise are able both to work remotely and relocate. Competition for skilled individuals in many realms has become international and less developed countries which have devoted their limited resources to educating and training their citizens to develop expertise and skills are concerned about losing those they have educated to other countries that might offer higher salaries and better living circumstances. This paper explores the role that taxation plays in the movement of people and capital. Part I addresses the relationship between taxes and retention of capital, including tax incentives for capital investment, shifting tax burdens from capital to labor, and rules preventing the escape of capital from its current taxing jurisdiction. Part II considers how taxes supplement immigration policy to attract capital currently outside the jurisdiction. Part III contemplates whether taxes play any significant role in attracting or retaining skilled labor. Part IV looks at taxes and tax trends and identifies how they disadvantage or benefit fungible, frequently immigrant labor. Part V concludes that capital tax rate competition seems unlikely to prevent capital flight as it inquires whether anti-immigration and anti-immigrant public sentiment has contributed to the shift of tax burdens from capital to labor.

Role of IP Due Diligence in Patent Area under Chinese Jurisdiction

With the advent of economic globalization, a growing number of countries have realized the value of IPRs in enhancing their competitiveness in the world economy. Intellectual property protection has become a worldwide concern in terms of cross-border competition. The acceleration in technology development and money-spinning compensation in lawsuit makes patents particularly crucial among other IPRs for a company to compete towards market rivals. IPDD is of great legal importance in terms of listing, M&A, independent R&D and infringement lawsuits. IP assets, including but not limited to patents drive many high technology strategies. For a variety of reasons, too many high-tech companies own patent rights without having an accurate understanding of the true value and real/potential risks associated with their patent portfolios or without initially developing and executing an assessment to thoroughly understand what their patent portfolios will entail. Serious consequences of IP due diligence failures take place again and again. As a consequence, it is of particular importance to conduct specific IPDD based on different needs in different scenarios. From the perspective of patent rights, the IPDD project mainly includes dealing with patentable subject matter, patentability requirements, scope of protection, prosecution of patent applications, and, e.g. enforcement and patent litigation. All these issues find a close match in statutory rules and their court interpretation. Thereby the sight for many issues decisive for successful exploitation of patents, but also all other forms of IP rights, as well as the reasons underlying their justification, often fall short. This applies to decisions such as: whether to invest into a risky RD whether and where to file and prosecute a patent application; whether to exploit a patent in own manufacturing activity, or to use it as a strategic tool against competitors; whether to license or assign a patent to a third party, or whether to take a license, or acquire a third party patent; finally, e.g., whether to acquire or not to acquire a company or to merge with it, in view of its patent portfolio. Taken these into consideration, the main discussion of the thesis includes the discussions on the objectives and limitations of IPDD, the instrument of IPDD and the role of due diligence in different scenarios. The study shows that conducting an IPDD will not only provide a pre-warning of a potential IP infringement but also assist in building up a promising business plan. IPDD can also help a company to determine the nature of IP protection in demand, estimate the possibility of IP disputes, avoid pitfalls in M&A and minimize the damage in the event the infringement established. For China, an IP latecomer, the experience and development of other jurisdictions may shed some light on how to make full use of IPDD in China. However, it is not advisable to transplant the other jurisdiction into China’s legislation totally and uncritically. China's IP protection system still leaves room for the judicial practice to evolve in many aspects. The full utilization of IPDD needs to be refined in the ongoing practice in conjunction with China's national conditions.

Normative data for an expanded set of stimuli for testing high-level influences on object perception: OMEFA-II

We present normative data for an expanded set of stimuli designed to investigate past experience effects on object detection. The stimuli are vertically-elongated “bipartite” displays comprising two equal-area regions meeting at an articulated central border. When the central border is assigned to one side, a shaped figure (i.e., an object) is detected on that side. Participants viewing brief masked exposures typically detect figures more often on the critical side of Intact displays where a common (“familiar”) object is depicted than on a matched critical side of Part-Rearranged (PR) displays comprising the same parts arranged in novel configurations. This pattern of results showed that past experience in the form of familiar configuration rather than familiar parts is a prior for figure assignment. Spurred by research implicating a network involving the perirhinal cortex of the medial temporal lobe in these familiar configuration effects, we enlarged the stimulus set from 24 to 48 base stimuli to increase its usefulness for behavioral, neuropsychological, and neuroimaging experiments. We measured the percentage of participants who agreed on a single interpretation for each side of Intact, Upright PR, and Inverted PR displays (144 displays; 288 sides) under long exposure conditions. High inter-subject agreement is taken to operationally define a familiar configuration. This new stimulus set is well-suited to investigate questions concerning how parts and wholes are integrated and how high- and low-level brain areas interact in object detection. This set also allows tests of predictions regarding cross-border competition in figure assignment and assessments of individual differences. The displays, their image statistics, and normative data are available online (https://osf.io/j9kz2/).

The Antitrust Regulation on Abuse of Dominant Market Position in the Field of Big Data：From the Perspective of Methodological Improvement

The provision of prohibiting abuse of dominant market position in China’s antitrust law is limited to such types of behavior as “monopoly pricing” and “limited transaction”, which not only narrows the scope of regulation, but also blurs the criteria of regulation. A lot of anti-competitive behaviors in the field of big data are not stipulated by the antitrust law, which may lead to a lack of supervision. Furthermore, the current regulatory methods do not focus on the analysis of big data market behaviors, but use the deductive method from general to individual, tending to assume the type of monopoly behaviors on the basis of law. The double failure of legal provisions and interpretation methods contrasts strongly with the regulatory requirements in the field of big data. To tackle this problem, the traditional regulatory methodology needs to be adjusted in accordance with the characteristics of the big data market from the three aspects: market power identification, abuse behavior screening, and competition damage effect analysis.First of all, we should take the data value chain as the basis, and fully consider the network effect, cross-border competition, dynamic competition and many other characteristics of the big data market, to evaluate the market power. Secondly, with the help of the infringement identification of “exclusionary abuse” and “exploitative abuse”, we may quickly identify and summarize the behavior types of market dominant position abuse in the field of big data. Lastly, we should establish specific identification methods and competitive damage analysis to regulate those anti-competitive behaviors associated with big data such as “restricting interoperability” and “excessive collection and use of data”.As China’s anti-monopoly law is being comprehensively revised and improved, we should take this opportunity to modify the existing provisions and improve the regulatory methodology in view of the development of the digital economy. For one thing, the legislature should summarize special factors according to the characteristics of big data industry in the legal provisions defining relevant markets and evaluating market power. For another thing, China should refer to the legislative model of the EU competition law and determine “exclusionary abuse” and “exploitative abuse” as the basic types of the abuse of dominant market position, so as to expand the scope of application of antitrust laws. In addition, China should issue antitrust law enforcement guidelines, summarize the types of abuses common in the field of big data, and formulate corresponding antitrust law enforcement methods and regulatory measures.

Assessment of competitive hub status of cities in Europe and Asia from an international air traffic perspective

The objective of this paper is to develop a refined gravity model for the quantitative assessment of competitive hub status of cities between 2000 and 2012 from the perspective of international air traffic movements. Its focus of attention is Europe and Asia, where cross border competition has been witnessed among major cities for the role as a key international air traffic hub. To this end, the research incorporates global network connectivity (GNC) as a measure of business connections into an established gravity model that previously relied on GDP per head, population and distance to account for international air links. The results confirm the dynamic change of the air transport city hierarchy, demonstrating a stronger presence of a number of previously secondly ranked cities as international air traffic hubs over this period. The paper concludes with suggestions that possible extension of geographical scope and incorporation of domestic air traffic could enrich the insight of this approach.

A path to financial integration: steps for the Eurasian Economic Union

This paper analyzes the banking systems of the founding states of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) to indentify discrepancies that may hinder the establishment of a single market for financial services. Practical contributions are derived from two dimensions. First, a comparison of the EAEU banking sectors’ structures prior to integration reveals common features such as high concentration, low level of foreign ownership and dominance of state-controlled banks. Significant heterogeneity in the development of the EAEU banking sectors, however, is observed. We expect changes towards reinforced Russian banks’ power in smaller EAEU member states. Intense cross-border competition will drive a further consolidation of domestic credit institutions and decrease the market share of state banks. Second, harmonization of banking regulations and supervisory practices is a critical starting point for moving to a single market for financial services. We report some divergences in the implementation of Basel III standards at the national levels. Russian banks’ regulatory framework is more advanced and compliant with international requirements for capitalization and liquidity. Governance and information disclosure in the EAEU banking sectors, however, remain weak. Unless regulation is strengthened and appropriate prudential tools to control bank risks are properly set, financial integration may facilitate spillover of risks across national borders and threaten the financial stability in the EAEU.

Sino-US Trade and Trade War

Trade has been one of the most primary reasons behind economic association. Cross-border trade not only makes the markets cost-efficient but rather also brings up a higher degree of specialization to the respective nations. Bilateral trades have proven to be quintessential to both sides of the deal. However, on a parallel front, every economy has a self-interest toward the domestic produce, and they also try to defend their local manufacturers from cross-border competition. The United States has an “America-first” policy. Whenever the United States imposes tariffs and duties, similar responses have been observed by China. These moves are an area of great concern for global trade. The impact is often visible on the rest of the world. A trade-off exists between domestic economic growth and favored imports. This study is an attempt to discuss the trade relations between the United States and China and how this has led to a trade war. The trade tensions between the United States and China may continue for a few more years. There is a battle for economic supremacy and global leadership. This study explains why the United States is increasing tariffs on Chinese goods and how China is retaliating. This US–China trade war has affected not only the two economies but also the world economy. This study elucidates the repercussions of trade war on the international supply chain and the countries of the European Union. This study has also endeavored to discuss the impact of this trade war on the Indian economy. It is a golden opportunity for India to increase exports to China, the United States, and Europe.

Equality of Opportunity in a European Social Market Economy*

AbstractThis article investigates what role the ideal of equality of opportunity should play in a European social market economy (ESME). After defining ‘social market economy’ and sketching different conceptions of equality of opportunity, it is argued that a social market economy must implement a substantive version of equality of opportunity. Subsequent sections assess how such a robust version needs adaptation in light of the EU's special nature: first, it assesses the merits of a direct transnational application of interpersonal substantive equality. Second, it considers what the ideal requires in a ESME understood along internationalist lines: even on this account, labour mobility creates tensions between EU citizens' claims to equal prospective chances in a fair cross‐border competition against each state's prerogative of providing the highest level of education to its residents. The concluding section offers some suggestions how we might alleviate this tension between domestic equality of opportunity and national autonomy.

International Management, Differentiating Factors, and its Relation to Culture

The world has globalized more than ever today. Companies from different countries compete in the global market place fiercely. The quick development of globalization is referred to various factors involving the immense usage of technology and its accompanying uses in international management. Political developments allow cross-border trade agreements and global competition for increasing numbers of consumers has been improving around the world. Emerging economies are gaining more power, the middle-class consumer profile is growing and the need for enhanced productivity and consumption in developed states instigates their economies. The increasing globally interconnectivity flattens the world. Thus, in the world where the globalization is uniting countries, economies and cultures, the issue of international management has gained much importance. The aim of this article is to review the issue with respect to international management, the effect of culture and make implications regrading to intercultural management resting on comprehensive and credible international publications.

Competition and cooperation for intermodal container transhipment: A network optimization approach

This study presents an analysis of cross-border competition and cooperation between ports in Bangladesh and India. Nepal and Bhutan are countries without access to seaports — two landlocked countries in South Asia, depending solely on the Indian port of Kolkata for their international seaborne trade. Alternatives do exist in the Bangladeshi ports of Chittagong and Mongla but these are not exploited, in spite of trade agreements that allow access to a third country's port, and/or crossing the land of a third, intermediate, country. We formulate a mixed integer linear programming optimization model to find the optimum economic benefit of port users (serving Bhutan, Nepal and Northeast India) and port authorities (Chittagong, Kolkata, Mongla), were Indian and Bangladeshi ports to cooperate in serving intermodal transhipment traffic. Our results show that port users would benefit greatly from such a cooperation, in terms of reduced transportation costs, although Kolkata Port Authority (KPA) would suffer a revenue loss for which it ought to be somehow compensated. Sensitivity analyses considering equal terminal handling charges (THC) for transhipment container at the three ports, as well as different capacity and demand volatilities are also carried out, to establish the robustness of any strategic decisions that might be made on the basis of our findings. Finally, we show that inland transportation costs determine container transhipment demand to distant hinterlands, rather than THC at ports.

‘북극해(北極海)’를 둘러싼 초국경 경쟁과 지역협력의 거버넌스 : 최근의 경과와 시사점

‘북극해(北極海)’를 둘러싼 초국경 경쟁과 지역협력의 거버넌스 : 최근의 경과와 시사점