Facing Oligopoly and Protectionism: the fate of small producers in the inter-war nickel industry

In the inter-war era international cartels and oligopolies dominated several industries. At the same time trade barriers were increasing. This article explores the fate of two small nickel producers, the Canadian company Falconbridge and the Norwegian Raffineringsverket. Falconbridge operated a nickel refinery in Norway from 1929 onwards. The article shows that small firms could act as ‘free riders’ in the nickel market provided that they had sufficient ore resources, were vertically integrated and had low marginal costs. The article also demonstrates that the Great Depression, widespread rise of protectionism and the move towards autarchy had surprisingly limited impact on the international nickel industry. Somewhat similar developments can be found in several industries. The article thus offers some new perspectives on the growth of the Norwegian exports of metallurgical products and thereby on Norwegian economic performance in the 1930s.     

Environmental and Resource Degradation Associated with Small‐Scale Enterprise Clusters in the Red River Delta of Northern Vietnam

The paper reports on an empirical study of the environmental and resource degradation observed in small‐scale handicraft clusters in the Red River Delta of northern Vietnam. Most entrepreneurs in these clusters face important challenges, including depletion of natural resources, linked to acute shortages of capital and land. Such issues are identified as the main cause of overcrowding, poor working conditions and extreme environmental degradation. The study also highlights some industrial ecology practices at the enterprise level, and assesses the role played by the government in providing incentives for enterprises to invest in new technology and pollution control. Drawing from the analysis of a questionnaire survey of 56 handicraft enterprises, the study identifies the major constraints they encounter in adopting new environmentally clean technologies and engaging in environmental management. Shortage of capital and lack of knowledge about the benefits of new technologies were viewed as the most important barriers, followed by shortage of skilled workers, poor market conditions and scarcity of land appropriate for industrial production.     

Anchoring of Firms in the Neighbourhood: Does Local Social and Physical Order Affect Local Firms' Investment Strategies?

An increasing number of small- and medium-sized firms, whose low relocation propensity seems to point to strong local anchors, have moved to residential neighbourhoods. On the one hand, the neighbourhood context, an attractive production milieu with rich social network potential, may enable entrepreneurs to increase investments in either human capital (personnel) or physical capital (premises, production goods). These investments further anchor firms in a neighbourhood, where they contribute to a thriving local economy. On the other hand, high crime rates, a deteriorated physical environment and a lack of social capital can discourage entrepreneurs from investing locally. In this study, we conducted a multilevel analysis on the relative contribution of neighbourhood characteristics to entrepreneurial investment strategies and controlled for firm and entrepreneur characteristics. We found that neighbourhood cohesiveness and liveability—but not local market characteristics—make a small but significant contribution to explaining local entrepreneurs' investments. This contribution is even stronger for the smallest firms. Therefore, a spatially targeted policy aimed at improving social cohesion and safety is likely to benefit both residents and small local firms.     

The Sharing of Knowledge to Gain a Competitive Advantage by Small Businesses in Africa: Some critical comments

The application of knowledge management methods by small businesses in Africa can contribute to the continent's growth rate. Africa's wealth lies in its human resources, and in its indigenous knowledge. Investing in the intellectual development of African people, and preserving their indigenous knowledge is an important route towards sustainable development. If small African businesses learn to apply knowledge management methods — particularly the SECI model in order to preserve and use their indigenous knowledge in their local markets, they will indeed reach new horizons of competitive advantage and market profitability.     

Small Businesses Need Strong Mediators: Mitigating the Disadvantages of Peripheral Localization Through Alliance Formation

This paper investigates how small entrepreneurial firms in two peripheral regions developed by entering the oil and gas industry. The paper draws on previous studies related to the establishment of strategic alliances and emerging clusters and contributes to these research streams by examining the disadvantages of peripheral localization and small firm size. We use a longitudinal case study based on primary data consisting of 54 in-depth interviews conducted between 2007 and 2012 to illustrate that when large-scale oil and gas projects enter a peripheral region, oil companies can moderate local firms' disadvantages related to peripheral localization by actively facilitating relationships with established national firms. By facilitating such relationships and maintaining an active moderating role, strategic alliances and emerging cluster structures can arise. A cross-case analysis illustrates that the oil company had a decisive role in one of the two cases in two dimensions: its role as intermediary between local firms and national firms and its role in fostering the development of an emerging cluster structure by stimulating the establishment of new firms through the oil and gas project. In the second case, the oil company was unable to facilitate regional development.     

Barriers and Limitations in the Development of Industrial Innovation in the Region

The growing interest in public policy contributing to the expansion of industrial innovation, has become increasingly significant, resulting from the interrelationship between innovation, competitiveness, and economic growth. This article presents the results of an empirical study in identifying the most important barriers to the development of innovation, as ascribed by industrial firms belonging to the high-tech sector alongside the more traditional industries. The data were collected through field survey of industrial firms, located in the Northern region of Israel. A considerable unexpected similarity was identified in the most important factors that constitute barriers to innovation, between the industrial sectors and the different regions investigated. The most significant limitations are those that relate to the high risk involved with the engagement in innovation. The risks are related, on the one hand, to the lack of financial resources, and on the other hand, to the high cost needed for this engagement, thereby affecting the time needed for return on investment. Additionally, the lack of highly skilled workers was also found to be a significant barrier.     

Entrepreneurial spin‐off enterprises in Göteborg,Sweden

This paper focuses on the development of technology‐based entrepreneurial spin‐offs in the Göteborg region. Employment growth and patenting activities of university spin‐offs (USOs) from Chalmers University of Technology are compared with the development of other new technology‐based firms. The results indicate that the majority of the Chalmers USOs are very small firms with low growth. Corporate spin‐offs (CSOs) are found to grow faster than other technology‐based firms, both USOs and non‐spin‐offs. However, the Chalmers USOs are found to be more successful in terms of patenting activities. It is speculated that USOs are especially beneficial to regional development when they are acting as technology suppliers to other local companies.     

Determinants of the Uneven Regional Participation of Firms in European Technology Programmes. The 'Low R&D Trap'

Technology is of key importance to the growth of regional firms and economies. Research has shown the association between low technology development or take-up and regional disparities. Hence technology policy is moving closer to the heart of regional policies. European innovation programmes are intended to involve firms, large and small, in international technology research and development networks. The paper focuses on the involvement of Spanish firms in such programmes. Participation tends to be low if business R&D, presence of large firms, and the development of regional innovation systems are also low. Creation of R&D infrastructure through the Structural Funds has now to be prioritized at EU level and also define a new scheme of sectoral priorities in order to support R&D innovation activities in fields diverse from high-tech, if regions are to escape the 'low R&D trap'.     

The Determinants of Regional Sourcing by Multinational Manufacturing Firms: Evidence from Yorkshire and Humberside,UK

An examination of the factors influencing the extent of regional sourcing by multinational manufacturing firms using data collected by interview from 50 foreign- and UK-owned plants in Yorkshire and Humberside. The evidence shows that higher levels of regional sourcing are observed where certain demand characteristics coincide with strengths in the supply potential of the region. A 'corporate filter' reduces regional sourcing. There were no differences in regional sourcing between foreign- and UK-owned multinationals. The findings identify barriers to policy aspirations of increased regional sourcing and emphasize that any policy initiatives should target the plants of domestic, as well as foreign, multinational enterprises (MNE).     

Supplier linkages of foreign-owned manufacturing firms in the UK: the influence of entry mode,subsidiary autonomy and nationality

This article tests the hypothesis that the supplier linkages which subsidiaries of foreign-owned companies make with indigenous firms in the UK are influenced by entry mode, the amount of autonomy which is granted to the subsidiary which is established and the nationality of the parent company. Data were collected from foreign-owned firms in the UK and an ordered probit model with the change in supplier linkages as the dependent variable was devised and tested. The results provide support for the hypothesis in terms of entry mode and subsidiary autonomy, but not in terms of parent nationality. This study represents a new approach to the study of supplier linkages and integrates concepts and studies from both regional science and international business. Foreign-owned firms which entered the UK by means of a greenfield entry tend to have a relatively positive effect on the creation and growth of supplier linkages, whereas those which entered by way of a merger or acquisition tended to have a relatively negative effect on the growth of such linkages. This finding has important implications for academics and policy-makers alike. Although the potential impact which the creation of supplier linkages can make upon the host country's economy has long been recognised, little research has been undertaken to identify the key factors which affect such growth. With increased levels of globalisation it is important that governments are able to maximise the impact which foreign direct investment makes upon the economy of their countries.     

Foodscapes and the Geographies of Poverty: Sustenance,Strategy, and Politics in an Urban Neighborhood

This paper argues that food should be a more central focus of critical geographical research into urban poverty and that the concept of “foodscape” can contribute to this literature. We utilize the concept in a study of the daily practices of accessing food among low‐income residents of the Downtown Eastside neighborhood of Vancouver, BC. We highlight how food access for the urban poor involves a complex and contradictory negotiation of both sites of encounter and care and also exclusion and regulation. Focusing on foodscapes emphasizes the social, relational, and political construction of food and thus highlights not simply food provision but also questions of existing power structures and potentialities for future change. Therefore, we discuss efforts to question the existing food system in Vancouver, to resist the gentrification processes that threaten the Downtown Eastside's food resources, and to build alternative strategies for urban food justice.     

A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK FOR SMALL BUSINESS POLICY

A number of public policy issues have been discussed in this article, the most important of which are: 1. Small business would not need special consideration if our economy were basically a competitive one. 2. A large and growing segment of our economy has sufficient market and political power to make our economy basically non-competitive. 3. Small firms tend to provide price competition, to lead in the development of new products and processes, and to generate new innovations and new employment. 4. Government policy tends to create artificial economies of scale, giving an unwarranted advantage to the very large firm. As a first approximation, a policy of government neutrality on firms of varying size is needed. But, because of discriminations which already exist which favor large firms over small firms, special small business programs may be necessary to provide an equitable policy base. Unfortunately, programs designed to benefit all business, like the investment tax credit, tend to primarily benefit larger firms (Berney, 1979). This is the case for two reasons. First, there is a basic difference in production relationships: large firms tend to be more capital intensive and small firms more labor intensive. Second, the more complex a rule or regulation, the more costly it is for small business to use it. Consequently, even the employment tax credit, which should benefit the small firm is not used by them. Instead, it tends more to benefit the larger firm. Neutrality, as a governmental policy, would appear to demand different treatment for firms of varying size. As an example, the “regulatory flexibility” concept applies different standards to different sized firms so that the burden of regulation is more equitably distributed. The concept of encouraging or requiring financial institutions and other lenders to establish “dual prime rates” is a further example. Since small firms appear to have much higher debt to equity ratios and rely more heavily on shorter-term bank credit, they are more heavily burdened by a tight money policy which forces increases of interest rates. Thus, dual prime rates help to spread the burden of rising interest costs more equally. As many people prefer to work for themselves, equalizing the burden of government policy could only serve to increase the basic growth rate for small business, thus providing an easier start for entrepreneurs and would encourage a more rapid rate of economic growth. None of these discussions, however, argues that small business should be protected from failure. The more efficient firms will succeed and prosper, and the least efficient will not. Many currently successful entrepreneurs learn how to improve their production processes or managerial skills from their failures. What is being recommended as a first step is that government should concentrate on equalizing burdens and benefits in order to achieve true neutrality. If private economies of scale do indeed exist, new firms must grow to survive; what the government should not create are artificial economies of scale with public policy. A strong argument for further action can also be made: it appears that significant external benefits are produced by an economic system with a dynamic small business sector. Since these benefits go to society as a whole rather than entrepreneurs alone in the form of increased profits, a freely operating market without government assistance does not generate as many new small businesses as would be optimal for our society. To internalize the benefits that come from small business, governmental programs need to be devised to increase the rate of return on new, innovative small businesses. Should this happen, we could then anticipate increased rapid rates of innovation and technological change, more rapid rates of employment growth, expanded price competition in all sectors of the economy, and improved export capabilities, in short, true flexibility in our capitalistic system.     

Export-led Technology Development in the Four Dragons: The Case of Electronics

To date, little attention has been paid to the strategies of local firms in bringing about industrialization in Bast Asia. This article focuses on the methods by which domestic firms utilized foreign connections to overcome technology and market barriers in electronics. A simple market-technology model is developed as a first approximation of how domestic technology assimilation relates to export marketing in the four ‘Dragons' of East Asia (South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore). It proposes that export demand shaped the pace and pattern of technological progress in electronics in each of the four Dragons. Historical evidence shows that each country used a distinctive mix of direct and indirect export mechanisms to acquire technology and to enter international markets. Foreign buyers, transnational corporations (TNCs), original equipment manufacturer (OEM) arrangements, joint ventures and licensing deals were exploited by ‘latecomer’ firms to their market and technology advantage. Asian firms progressed from simple assembly tasks to more sophisticated product design and development capabilities, travelling ‘backwards' along the product life cycle of traditional innovation models. Today, leading Asian firms invest heavily in R&D and engage in partnerships with TNCs to acquire and develop advanced new electronics technologies. The technological progress of latecomers remains closely coupled to export demand through OEM and other institutional arrangements.     

The Geo-imaginaries of potential in Mexico's Burgos Basin

In this paper, we use the geo-imaginary analytic to show how actors utilized narratives of resource potential and speculative economic futures for the Burgos Basin in northeastern Mexico to affect a broader liberalization of the nation's hydrocarbon sector. Our research traces the history of the word “potential” as a discrete and repetitive rhetorical technique used variously to speculate on hydrocarbon production, economic development, regional energy development, and risks associated with the Burgos. We also identify an array of visualizations, what we refer to as ‘conjurings,’ used with narratives of potential to encourage investments in the Basin's development. These include: maps depicting Burgos geologic continuity with productive Texas fields, quantitative forecasts of growing production, visual depictions of private firms facilitating future production, and fracking as a necessary wedge to pry open the Burgos' unrealized potential. Finally, using governmentality, we link Burgos potentiality discourses to socio-political outcomes, including in the early 2000s, when the Basin was imagined as a way to counterbalance the skyrocketing costs of imported natural gas, continuing with the 2013–2014 Reforms, and into the post-Reform oil and gas conference spaces that facilitated financial investing opportunities. We also argue that the current administration leveraged anti-fracking discourse to reverse the liberalization of Mexico's hydrocarbon sector. By drawing together overlapping elements from scholarship into resources, speculation, and governmentality, and by parsing the ways that potential narratives and conjuring tools are deployed, this research contributes to ongoing debates in political geography around natural resources and the geopolitics of the subsurface.     

How Do Local Knowledge Spillovers and Experience Affect Export Performance?

This research paper tries to analyse the role that knowledge about foreign markets has in increasing firms' exports in clustered spaces. We consider two interrelated sources of this knowledge, a firm's direct experience and its indirect experience from other clustered firms. In particular, it is proposed that firms can improve their export performance by accessing others' knowledge as long as they have some previous direct experience that allows them to identify, understand and exploit these. Nevertheless, this positive influence of previous direct experience on exports continues only to a certain point, at which time it becomes less relevant or even negative. Firms with broad international experience have little to learn from local interactions, being more enriching establishing relationships with agents from outside the cluster. Empirical evidence gathered from wine producers located in La Rioja, Spain, confirms the moderating but decreasing importance of previous experience.     

The District and the Global Economy: Exportation Versus Foreign Location

We depict an industrial district as a center of innovation where positive local spillovers sustain the endogenous invention of new goods by profit-seeking firms. After invention, firms face a crucial choice between reaching distant markets by export or plant delocation. Attempts by firms to circumvent trade barriers through delocation slow down the pace of innovation and harm the welfare of the district.     

Staying Power: What Influences Micro-firm Survival in Tourism?

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how previous experience and location of entrepreneurs influence the survival of new tourism firms. The paper departs from recent evolutionary economic geography advancements, highlighting the importance of routines and skills as well as location-specific knowledge for firm success. While having been well-researched for manufacturing industries characterized by high entry barriers, little knowledge is currently available on the factors influencing survival rates in service sectors with low entry barriers. A quantitative approach applies hazard models to investigate the survival rates over a seven-year period of a total of 133 new micro-tourism firms started between 1999 and 2001 in the four northernmost counties of Sweden. The geo-referenced micro-database ASTRID links information on firm features (e.g. firm births and deaths, spatial coordinates and industry codes) to characteristics of entrepreneurs (e.g. age, education, previous experience). The main finding is that entrepreneurs with previous work experience in related sectors are more likely to survive and, in this case, entrepreneurs without local experience tend to be less successful. We find no evidence that new firms operating in regions specialized in tourism have a survival advantage. Our analysis also indicates that surviving firms improve performance over time. The paper thus contributes new knowledge on the determinants of micro-firm survival in tourism.     

Cross-border and local co-operation on the island of Ireland: An economic perspective

Cross-border and local co-operation can foster local learning and contribute positively to business performance and social cohesion. This paper considers firms' economic motivation for both types of co-operation around the Ireland–Northern Ireland border. This area, while inevitably impacted by civil unrest in Northern Ireland, shares many of the economic and developmental characteristics of border areas throughout Europe. Simultaneous probit models are used to examine the determinants of co-operation. Overall, around a third of firms in Ireland and Northern Ireland engage in local co-operation of some form; around one in six in Northern Ireland and one in twelve in Ireland also engage in cross-border co-operation. Proximity to the border, perceived barriers to cross-border co-operation and country uncertainty reduce the incidence of cross-border co-operation rates below that of local co-operation. Cross-border co-operation in Northern Ireland is more common because of small region size and fewer perceived barriers to cross-border co-operation.