International business refers to business activities that involve the transfer of resources, goods, services, knowledge, skills, or information

across national boundaries. International business is a term used to collectively describe all commercial transactions (private and governmental, sales, investments, logistics, and transportation) that take place between two or more nations. What is Globalization? Globalization is a process of interaction and integration among the people, companies, and governments of different nations, a process driven by international trade and investment and aided by information technology. This process has effects on the environment, on culture, on political systems, on economic development and prosperity, and on human physical wellbeing in societies around the world What is acculturation? It is a process in which members of one cultural group adopt the beliefs and behaviors of another group. Although acculturation is usually in the direction of a minority group adopting habits and language patterns of the dominant group, acculturation can be reciprocal--that is, the dominant group also adopts patterns typical of the minority group. Assimilation of one cultural group into another may be evidenced by changes in language preference, adoption of common attitudes and values, members hip in common social groups and institutions, and loss of separate political or ethnic identification. What is absolute advantage? In the theory of international trade, a country or firm has an absolute advantage if it can produce a product (good or service) more 'efficiently' (cheaply) than others. First suggested by the UK economist Adam Smith as an extension of his division of labour doctrine What are NTB?.Non-tariff barriers to trade (NTBs) are trade barriers that restrict imports but are not in the usual form of a tariff. Some common examples of NTB's are anti-dumping measures and countervailing duties, which, although they are called "non-tariff" barriers, have the effect of tariffs once they are enacted. What is vertical integration? Vertical integration is the process in which several steps in the production and/or distribution of a product or service are controlled by a single company or entity, in order to increase that companys or entitys power in the marketplace. wha is strategic alliance? A Strategic Alliance is a relationship between two or more parties to pursue a set of agreed upon goals or to meet a critical business need while remaining independent organizations. Partners may provide the strategic alliance with resources such as products, distribution channels, manufacturing capability, project funding, capital equipment, knowledge, expertise, or intellectual property.
What are horizontal and vertical FDI

Horizontal FDI is FDI in the same industry abroad as that in which a firm operates at home.Vertical integration is the expansion of a firm into a stage of the production process other than that of the original business. A company such as BHP Billiton which makes steel can integrate vertically by expanding its activities upstream, or backward, toward the source of raw materials such as iron, coal and limestone production, or by expanding downstream, or forward, toward the sale of the end product as BHP Billiton does with its subsidiary Australian Iron and Steel Co.

What is common law system? Common law is a legal system that is largely formed by the decisions previously made by courts and not imposed by legislatures or other government officials. The reasoning used to interpret this type of law is known as case-based reasoning. It is a strict, principle-based reasoning that uses the circumstances of a case to evaluate the laws that are applicable. Decisions that were made about similar cases are valuable, and the case in question is evaluated on the basis of past cases. . What is civil law? civil law, a modern legal system based upon Roman law, It is based on written legal codes, a hallmark of the Roman legal system, in which disputes were settled by reference to a written legal code arrived at through legislation, edicts, and the like; The civil law judge is bound by the provisions of the written law. The traditional civil law decision states the applicable provision from the code or from a relevant statute, and the judgment is based upon that provision. free rider problem A free rider is a person who enjoys the benefits of goods without contributing to the full cost or partial cost of providing them. This problem is now faced by European Union with regard to PIGS. Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain. Fators influencing the organizational structure of MNCs: the following five factors are the most common influence MNCs: size, life cycle, strategy, environment, and technology What is Foreign exchange risk? FX risk is the exposure to potential financial losses due to devaluation of the foreign currency against the U.S. dollar. Obviously, this exposure can be avoided by insisting on selling only in U.S. dollars. However, such an approach may result in losing export opportunities to competitors who are willing to accommodate their foreign buyers by selling in their local currencies. This approach could also result in the non-payment by a foreign buyer who may find it impossible to meet U.S. dollar-denominated payment obligations due to the devaluation of the local currency against the U.S. dollar. Transaction exposure Risk to a firm with known future cash flows in a foreign currency that arises from possible changes in the exchange rate. Translation exposure Risk of adverse effects on a firm's financial statements that may arise from changes in exchange rates. Foreign exchange exposure:The risk of loss stemming from exposure to adverse foreign exchange rate movements Defne collectivism and individualism. Collectivism means the subjugation of the individual to a group -- whether to a race, class or state does not matter. Collectivism holds that man must be chained to collective action and collective thought for the sake of what is called 'the common good'. Collectivism holds that the group---the nation, the community, the proletariat, the race, etc.---is the primary unit of reality and the ultimate standard of value. Asian collectivist cultures like China (Hong Kong 37th rank), view other companies with less collectivistic philosophy as cold and not supportive. Collectivistic cultures have a great emphasize on groups and think more in terms of we. Harmony and loyalty within a company is very important and should always be maintained and confrontation should be avoided.

"Individualism stands for a society in which the ties between individuals are loose: everyone is expected to look after himself or herself and his or her immediate family on. For example, Germany can be considered as individualistic with a relatively high score (67) on the scale of Hofstede compared to a country like Guatemala where they have strong collectivism (6 on the scale). Mention three anti dumping measures. In economics, "dumping" is any kind of predatory pricing, especially in the context of international trade. Selling same product at different prices, at home and abroad. It occurs when manufacturers export a product to another country at a price either below the price charged in its home market, or in quantities that cannot be explained through normal market competition. Objectives of dumping. Seasonal - when exporter has a bumper crop Cyclical - when exporter has a slump at home Predatory - intended to eliminate competitors Persistent - goes on and on. Types of dumping: Sporadic Dumping: Occasional sale of a commodity at below cost in order to unload an unforeseen and temporary surplus of the commodity without having to reduce domestic prices. Predatory Dumping: Temporary sale of a commodity at below cost or a lower price abroad in order to derive foreign producers out of business, after which prices are raised to take advantage of the monopoly power abroad. Persistent Dumping: Continuous tendency of a domestic monopolist to maximize total profits by selling the commodity at a higher price in the domestic market than internationally (to meet the competition of foreign rivals). For international price discrimination to take place, conditions must be met: Domestic and foreign markets must be separated. Demand elasticity of the product must be different in two markets. The good can be sold with a lower price where the demand elasticity is high; and with a higher price where demand elasticity is low. What is social mobility? Social mobility or intergenerational mobility as economists prefer to call it measures the degree to which peoples social status changes between generations. Refers to the movement of individuals or groups in social position over time. It may refer to classes, ethnic groups, or entire nations, An obvious example would be the son or daughter of up unskilled worker who is successful at high school, goes to college, qualifies as a computer software engineer and make a success of his/her life and earns vastly more than his/her parents did. In the traditional caste system of India, social position is determined by the historical rank, or caste, of the family and can rarely be changed. Social mobility is very limited in areas with rigid social structures, as marriage is often forbidden or frowned upon between people with widely different social standing. what is multipoint competition? Multipoint competition exists when firms compete with each other (or could potentially compete with each other) in more than one market. Multipoint competition refers to situations in which firms meet the same rivals in many markets, which may lead to a reduction of competitive pressure. Indeed, a high number of multipoint contacts between two rivals provides many footholds in each others strategic territories called spheres of influence - increasing the deterrents to attack, This situation is known under Mutual Forbearance (MF) Hypothesis, which proposes that firms which are multipoint competitors will compete less intensively with one another. Multipoint competitors can develop a tacit agreement by which each firm recognises the most important territories of their competitors since all territories served by a firm do not necessarily have the same strategic character.

What is eclectic paradigm? The eclectic paradigm is a theory in economics and is also known as the OLI-Model or OLI-Framework In order for a direct investment in a foreign country to be beneficial, the following advantages must be present: 1. Product or company specific advantages, such as a comparative advantage. 2. Location specific advantages - where the company derives greater benefit through a foreign establishment. 3. Market internalization - meaning, it is better for the company to exploit a foreign opportunity itself, rather than through an agreement with a foreign firm. Definition of 'Purchasing Power Parity - PPP' An economic theory that estimates the amount of adjustment needed on the exchange rate between countries in order for the exchange to be equivalent to each currency's purchasing power. The relative version of PPP is calculated as: Where: "S" represents exchange rate of currency 1 to currency 2 "P1" represents the cost of good "x" in currency 1 "P2" represents the cost of good "x" in currency 2 the exchange rate adjusts so that an identical good in two different countries has the same price when expressed in the same currency. For example, a chocolate bar that sells for C$1.50 in a Canadian city should cost US$1.00 in a U.S. city when the exchange rate between Canada and the U.S. is 1.50 USD/CDN. (Both chocolate bars cost US$1.00.) Mercantilism: An economic philosophy of the 16th and 17th centuries that international commerce should primarily serve to increase a country's financial wealth, especially of gold and foreign currency. It emphasised limitation of imports from other nations in order to improve tax revenues by exporting more goods. A franchise is a method by which the owner of the business, the franchisor, confers on investors, the franchisees, the right to operate the business in an agreed manner and style in return for ongoing fees. The agreement is governed by a contract, the Franchise agreement, which runs for a defined period of time, generally renewable and ranging from five to 20 years. Economic exposure: Currency exchange rate fluctuations due to economic and political turmoils in a country like civil war affect a firm's competitive position, the value of its assets, and its operating cash flows. If a company strikes a business deal with a small foreign nation and that nation becomes embroiled in a civil war there is then a high probability that the country will not honour its debt obligation to the business. Leontief paradox: Professor Wassily W. Leontief in 1954 reached a paradoxical conclusion that the USthe most capital abundant country in the world by any criterionexported labor-intensive commodities and imported capital- intensive commodities. This result has come to be known as the Leontief Paradox. [Para = contrary to, dox = opinion] customer mobility should be built on the assumption that consumers are mature citizens who freely choose products and services and should therefore take full responsibility for their actions.

organizational structure is the pattern or arrangement of jobs and groups of jobs within an organization. This pattern pertains to both reporting and operational relationships, provided they have some degree of permanence. The individual elements of an organization structure typically include 1) departments or divisions; 2) management hierarchy; 3) rules, procedures, and goals; and 4) temporary building blocks such as task forces or committees. BOOT: (build, own, operate, transfer) is a public-private partnership (PPP) project model in which a private organization conducts a large development project under contract to a publicsector partner, such as a government agency. A BOOT project is often seen as a way to develop a large public infrastructure project with private funding Reverse Culture Shock (a.k.a. "Re-entry Shock", or "own culture shock" may take place returning to one's home culture after growing accustomed to a new one can produce the same effects of external culture shock. This results from the psychosomatic and psychological consequences of the readjustment process to the primary culture. The affected person often finds this more surprising and difficult to deal with than the original culture shock. Definition of acculturation- socialization: the adoption of the behaviour patterns of the surrounding culture; "the socialization of children to the norms of their culture" all the knowledge and values shared by a society. the process of assimilating new ideas into an existing cognitive structure. Cross cultural management: Is manage people across cultures. The effective interaction and understanding of people who represent different cultures. When person from one cultural background meets interacts with, understands and deals with person from other cultural background. That is cross-cultural management. Some people are in favour of the world is converging, all things are going to be same. They are right. Some people are arguing still the world has divergence. They are also right. we learn how to manage both the convergence and divergence Transaction risk: Exchange rate fluctuations affect a nation's trading relationships with other nations. A higher currency makes a country's exports more expensive and imports cheaper in foreign markets; a lower currency makes a country's exports cheaper and its imports more expensive in foreign markets. Also called accounting Risk, the degree to which a firm's financial statements are exposed to exchange rate fluctuations. Exchange rates usually change between quarterly financial statements, causing significant variances between the reported figures. Turnkey project: It is a contract under which a firm agrees to fully design, construct and equip a manufacturing/ business/ service facility and turn the project over to the purchaser when it is ready for operation for a remuneration Tax haven: a country or independent region where taxes are low. Tax Haven or the place in which certain taxes are imposed either at a low rate or not at all is the best possible way out for those interested in reducing their tax rates. Bermuda is the first Tax Haven .Tax Haven in its truest sense was Switzerland. Technology Transfer Activities include: processing and evaluating invention disclosures; filing for patents; technology marketing; licensing; protecting intellectual property arising from research activity; and assisting in creating new businesses and promoting the success of existing firms. The result of these activities will be new products, more high-quality jobs, and an expanded economy.

Commercialization is one effective method of transferring technologies. Establishing a technology's prospects for commercial success depends largely on five factors: 1.Technical Development 2.Regulatory Clearance: 3. Manufacturing Requirements: 4. Market Development: 5. Financial Feasibility: What is ethnocentrism? Ethnocentrism is defined as the viewpoint that "one's own group is the center of everything," against which all other groups are judged. Ethnocentrism often entails the belief that one's own race or ethnic group is the most important and/or that some or all aspects of its culture are superior to those of other groups.The ethnocentric individual will judge other groups relative to his or her own particular ethnic group or culture, especially with concern to language, behavior, customs, and religion What is an international accounting? INTERNATIONAL ACCOUNTING is the international aspects of accounting, including such matters as accounting principles and reporting practices in different countries and their classification; patterns of accounting development; international and regional harmonization, foreign currency translation; foreign exchange risk; international comparisons of consolidation accounting and inflation accounting; accounting in developing countries; accounting in communist countries; performance evaluation of foreign subsidiaries. What do you understand by market imperfections? Market imperfection can be defined as anything that interferes with trade] This includes two dimensions of imperfections. First, imperfections cause a rational market participant to deviate from holding the market portfolio. Second, imperfections cause a rational market participant to deviate from his preferred risk level. Market imperfections generate costs which interfere with trades that rational individuals make (or would make in the absence of the imperfection What is Confucian dynamism? Michael Bond discovered a new dimension and labeled it Confucian work dynamism, to emphasize the importance of practical ethics based on the following principles: (1) the permanence of society is contingent on imbalanced relationships 2) virtuous behavior toward others(3) the family is the foundation and archetype of all social organizations; ; (4) virtues in life involve acquiring skills and education, working hard, being thrifty, having a sense of shame, and being patient and persevering; and (5) individuals should have a sense of commitment and organizational identity and loyalty. A transnational corporation (TNC) defined by UNCTAD, is generally regarded as an enterprise comprising entities in more than one country which operate under a system of decision-making that permits coherent policies and a common strategy. The entities are so linked, by ownership or otherwise, that one or more of them may be able to exercise a significant influence over the others and, in particular, to share knowledge, resources and responsibilities with the others.