Question: Why might an accounting-based control system

> Debate the relative merits of fixed and floating exchange rate regimes. From the perspective of an international business, what are the most important criteria for choosing between the systems? Which system is the more desirable for an international busi

> Uber’s strategy has been to break these regulations, establishing its service first, and then fighting attempts by regulators to shut the service down. This goes along with the old saying, “do first, ask questions later.” Is this business approach viable

> Do you think the standard IMF policy prescriptions of tight monetary policy and reduced government spending are always appropriate for developing nations experiencing a currency crisis? How might the IMF change its approach? What would the implications b

> What opportunities might current IMF lending policies to developing nations create for international businesses? What threats might they create?

> Why did the gold standard collapse? Is there a case for returning to some type of gold standard? What is it?

> You are the CFO of a U.S. firm whose wholly owned subsidiary in Mexico manufactures component parts for your U.S. assembly operations. The subsidiary has been financed by bank borrowings in the United States. One of your analysts told you that the Mexica

> You manufacture wine goblets. In mid-June you receive an order for 10,000 goblets from Japan. Payment of ¥400,000 is due in mid-December. You expect the yen to rise from its present rate of $1 = ¥130 to $1 = ¥100 by December. You can borrow yen at 6 perc

> Reread the Management Focus on Embraer, then answer the following questions: a. What does the recent economic history of Brazil tell you about the relationship between price inflation and exchange rates? What other factors might determine exchange rates

> Two countries, Great Britain and the U.S., produce just one good: beef. Suppose that the price of beef in the U.S. is $2.80 per pound, and in Britain it is £3.70 per pound. a. According to PPP theory, what should the $/£ spot exchange rate be? b. Suppo

> The interest rate on South Korean government securities with one-year maturity is 4 percent and the expected inflation rate for the coming year is 2 percent. The interest rate on U.S. government securities with one-year maturity is 7 percent, and the exp

> Read the Management Focus feature in this chapter, “NAFTA’s Tomato Wars,” then answer the following questions: a. Was the establishment of a minimum floor price for tomatoes consistent with the free trade principles enshrined in the NAFTA agreement? b. W

> After a promising start, Mercosur, the major Latin American trade agreement, has faltered and made little progress since 2000. What problems are hurting Mercosur? What can be done to solve these problems?

> Are cities around the world doing a disservice to citizens or visitors, or both, by banning it outright from operating in their community?

> How should a firm with self-sufficient production facilities in several ASEAN countries respond to the creation of a single market? What are the constraints on its ability to respond in a manner that minimizes production costs?

> How should a U.S. firm that currently exports to only ASEAN countries respond to the creation of a single market in this regional grouping?

> What were the causes of the 2010–2012 sovereign debt crisis in the EU? What does this crisis tell us about the weaknesses of the euro? Do you think the euro will survive the sovereign debt crisis?

> Do you think it is correct for the European Commission to restrict mergers between American companies that do business in Europe? (For example, the European Commission vetoed the proposed merger between WorldCom and Sprint, both U.S. companies, and it ca

> What in general was the effect of the creation of a single market and a single currency within the EU on competition within the EU? Why?

> What are the economic and political arguments for regional economic integration? Given these arguments, why don't we see more substantial examples of integration in the world economy?

> The world’s poorest countries are at a competitive disadvantage in every sector of their economies. They have little to export. They have no capital; their land is of poor quality; they often have too many people given available work opportunities; and t

> Drawing on the new trade theory and Porter's theory of national competitive advantage, outline the case for government policies designed to build a national competitive advantage in biotechnology. What kind of policies would you recommend the government

> Reread the Country Focus on moving white-collar jobs offshore. a. Who benefits from the outsourcing of skilled white-collar jobs to developing nations? Who are the losers? b. Will developing nations like the United States suffer from the loss of high-ski

> Reread the Country Focus feature, Is China Manipulating Its Currency in Pursuit of a Neo-Mercantilist Policy? a. Do you think China is pursuing an economic policy that can be characterized as neo-mercantilist? b. What should the United States, and othe

> Companies like Uber, Lyft (one of Uber’s main competitors), and Airbnb (an online marketplace that enables people to lease or rent short-term lodging) are innovating in fields that traditionally have been very complex and regulated. Can Uber’s business m

> What are the potential costs of adopting a free trade regime? Do you think governments should do anything to reduce these costs? What?

> Unions in developed nations often oppose imports from low-wage countries and advocate trade barriers to protect jobs from what they often characterize as “unfair” import competition. Is such competition “unfair”? Do you think that this argument is in the

> Is free trade fair? Discuss.

> Mercantilism is a bankrupt theory that has no place in the modern world. Discuss.

> NAFTA has produced significant benefits for the Canadian, Mexican, and U.S. economy. Discuss.

> You are the international manager of a U.S. business that has just developed a revolutionary new personal computer that can perform the same functions as existing PCs but costs only half as much to manufacture. Several patents protect the unique design o

> Read the Management Focus on Cemex and then answer the following questions: a. Which theoretical explanation, or explanations, of FDI best explains Cemex’s FDI? b. What is the value that Cemex brings to the host economy? Can you see any potential d

> What are the strengths of the eclectic theory of FDI? Can you see any shortcomings? How does the eclectic theory influence management practice?

> Compare and contrast these explanations of FDI: internalization theory and Knickerbocker's theory of FDI. Which theory do you think offers the best explanation of the historical pattern of FDI? Why?

> In 2008, inward FDI accounted for some 63.7 percent of gross fixed capital formation in Ireland, but only 4.1 percent in Japan (gross fixed capital formation refers to investments in fixed assets such as factories, warehouses, and retail stores). What do

> If you lived in a city with such diversity of people as Dubai, would you assimilate yourself with the people who are like you, or would you try to integrate into the overall community of all people?

> Reread the Management Focus, “Protecting U.S. Magnesium.” Who gains most from the antidumping duties levied by the United States on imports of magnesium from China and Russia? Who are the losers? Are these duties in the best national interests of the Uni

> You are an employee of an U.S. firm that produces personal computers in Thailand and then exports them to the United States and other countries for sale. The personal computers were originally produced in Thailand to take advantage of relatively low labo

> Given the arguments relating to the new trade theory and strategic trade policy, what kind of trade policy should business be pressuring government to adopt?

> Whose interests should be the paramount concern of government trade policy—the interests of producers (businesses and their employees) or those of consumers?

> Do you think that governments should consider human rights when granting preferential trading rights to countries? What are the arguments for and against taking such a position?

> Reread the Management Focus on Boeing and answer the following questions: a. What are the benefits to Boeing of outsourcing manufacturing of components for the Boeing 787 to firms based in other countries? b. What are the potential costs and risks to B

> If current trends continue, China may emerge as the world’s largest economy by 2030. Discuss the possible implications for such a development for (a) the world trading system; (b) the world monetary system; (c) the business strategy of today’s European-

> How does the Internet affect international business activity and the globalization of the world economy?

> Evaluate this statement: “Ultimately, the study of international business is no different from the study of domestic business. Thus, there is no point in having a separate course on international business.”

> How have changes in technology contributed toward the globalization of markets and production? Would the globalization of markets and production have been possible without these technological changes?

> What international staffing policy is AstraZeneca pursuing with regard to its “high-potential” employees?

> Evaluate this statement: “The study of international business is fine if you are going to work in a large multinational enterprise, but it has no relevance for individuals who are going to work in small firms.”

> You are the CFO of a Canadian firm that is considering building a $10 million factory in Russia to produce milk. The investment is expected to produce net cash flows of $3 million each year for the next 10 years, after which the investment will have to c

> You are the CFO of a U.S. firm whose wholly owned subsidiary in Mexico manufactures component parts for your U.S. assembly operations. The subsidiary has been financed by bank borrowings in the United States. One of your analysts told you that the Mexica

> Why do the accounting systems of different countries differ? Why do these differences matter?

> Why is diversity good for an international business? What actions can a company take to foster greater diversity?

> Reread the Management Focus on McDonald’s global compensation practices. How does McDonald’s approach help the company take into account local differences when reviewing the performance of different country managers and awarding bonus pay?

> In what ways can organized labor constrain the strategic choices of an international business? How can an international business limit these constraints?

> What is the link between an international business’s strategy and its human resource management policies, particularly with regard to the use of expatriate employees and their pay scale?

> Research suggests that many expatriate employees encounter problems that limit both their effectiveness in a foreign posting and their contribution to the company when they return home. What are the main causes and consequences of these problems, and how

> Why did Burberry initially choose a licensing strategy to expand its presence in Japan?

> What are the main advantages and disadvantages of the ethnocentric, polycentric, and geocentric approaches to staffing policy? When is each approach appropriate?

> You work for a company that designs and manufactures personal computers. Your company’s R&D center is in Michigan. The computers are manufactured under contract in Taiwan. Marketing strategy is delegated to the heads of three regional groups: a North Ame

> Price discrimination is indistinguishable from dumping. Discuss the accuracy of this statement.

> You are the marketing manager of a food products company that is considering entering the Indian market. The retail system in India tends to be very fragmented. Also, retailers and wholesalers tend to have long-term ties with Indian food companies; these

> Within 20 years, we will have seen the emergence of enormous global markets for standardized consumer products. Do you agree with this statement? Justify your answer.

> Imagine you are the marketing manager for a U.S. manufacturer of disposable diapers. Your firm is considering entering the Brazilian market. Your CEO believes the advertising message that has been effective in the United States will suffice in Brazil. Ou

> Reread the Country Focus feature on India and answer the following questions: a. What kind of economic system did India operate during 1947 to 1990? What kind of system is it moving toward today? What are the impediments to completing this transformatio

> You are a senior manager at a U.S. automobile company with the job of deciding whether to invest in production facilities in China, Russia, or Germany. These facilities will serve local market demand. Evaluate the benefits, costs, and risks associated wi

> What is the relationship among property rights, corruption, and economic progress? How important are anticorruption efforts in the effort to improve a country’s level of economic development?

> Reread the Management Focus on IKEA Production in China and then answer the following questions: a. What are the major benefits to IKEA of shifting so much of its global production to China? b. What are the risks associated with a heavy concentration of

> In terms of the strategic choice framework introduced in this part of the text, what strategy do you think IBM is pursuing today?

> To what extent does internalization theory explain Burberry’s experience in Japan?

> After falling from rest from a height of 30.0 m, a 0.500-kg ball rebounds upward, reaching a height of 20.0 m. If the contact between ball and ground lasted 2.00 ms, what average force was exerted on the ball?

> An object of mass m is dropped from the roof of a building of height h. While the object is falling, a wind blowing parallel to the face of the building exerts a constant horizontal force F on the object. (a) How long does it take the object to strike th

> A 970.-kg car starts from rest on a horizontal roadway and accelerates eastward for 5.00 s when it reaches a speed of 25.0 m/s. What is the average force exerted on the car during this time?

> Two forces are applied to a car in an effort to move it, as shown in Figure P4.12. (a) What is the resultant vector of these two forces? (b) If the car has a mass of 3000 kg, what acceleration does it have? Ignore friction. Figure P4.12

> A boat moves through the water with two forces acting on it. One is a 2.00 x 103-N forward push by the water on the propeller, and the other is a 1.80 x 103-N resistive force due to the water around the bow. (a) What is the acceleration of the 1.00 x 103

> A 5.0-g bullet leaves the muzzle of a rifle with a speed of 320 m/s. What force (assumed constant) is exerted on the bullet while it is traveling down the 0.82-m-long barrel of the rifle?

> The heaviest invertebrate is the giant squid, which is estimated to have a weight of about 2 tons spread out over its length of 70 feet. What is its weight in newtons?

> A 72-kg man stands on a spring scale in an elevator. Starting from rest, the elevator ascends, attaining its maximum speed of 1.2 m/s in 0.80 s. The elevator travels with this constant speed for 5.0 s, undergoes a uniform negative acceleration for 1.5 s,

> The board sandwiched between two other boards in Figure P4.91 weighs 95.5 N. If the coefficient of friction between the boards is 0.663, what must be the magnitude of the compression forces (assumed to be horizontal) acting on both sides of the center bo

> A fire helicopter carries a 620-kg bucket of water at the end of a 20.0-m-long cable. Flying back from a fire at a constant speed of 40.0 m/s, the cable makes an angle of 40.0° with respect to the vertical. Determine the force exerted by air resistance o

> If only one force acts on an object, can it be in equilibrium? Explain.

> The parachute on a race car of weight 8820 N opens at the end of a quarter-mile run when the car is traveling at 35.0 m/s. What total retarding force must be supplied by the parachute to stop the car in a distance of 1.00 x 103 m?

> An inventive child wants to reach an apple in a tree without climbing the tree. Sitting in a chair connected to a rope that passes over a frictionless pulley (Fig. P4.88), the child pulls on the loose end of the rope with such a force that the spring sca

> A car accelerates down a hill (Fig. P4.87), going from rest to 30.0 m/s in 6.00 s. During the acceleration, a toy (m = 0.100 kg) hangs by a string from the car’s ceiling. The acceleration is such that the string remains perpendicular to

> A sled weighing 60.0 N is pulled horizontally across snow so that the coefficient of kinetic friction between sled and snow is 0.100. A penguin weighing 70.0 N rides on the sled, as in Figure P4.86. If the coefficient of static friction between penguin a

> Two boxes of fruit on a frictionless horizontal surface are connected by a light string as in Figure P4.85, where m1 = 10.0 kg and m2 = 20.0 kg. A force of 50.0 N is applied to the 20.0-kg box. (a) Determine the acceleration of each box and the tension i

> On an airplane’s takeoff, the combined action of the air around the engines and wings of an airplane exerts an 8000-N force on the plane, directed upward at an angle of 65.0° above the horizontal. The plane rises with constant velocity in the vertical di

> A 2.00-kg aluminum block and a 6.00-kg copper block are connected by a light string over a frictionless pulley. The two blocks are allowed to move on a fixed steel block wedge (of angle θ = 30.0°) as shown in Figure P4.83. Making

> Measuring coefficients of friction A coin is placed near one edge of a book lying on a table, and that edge of the book is lifted until the coin just slips down the incline as shown in Figure P4.82. The angle of the incline, θc, called the c

> A frictionless plane is 10.0 m long and inclined at 35.0°. A sled starts at the bottom with an initial speed of 5.00 m/s up the incline. When the sled reaches the point at which it momentarily stops, a second sled is released from the top of the incline

> A high diver of mass 70.0 kg steps off a board 10.0 m above the water and falls vertical to the water, starting from rest. If her downward motion is stopped 2.00 s after her feet first touch the water, what average upward force did the water exert on her

> A ball is thrown upward in the air by a passenger on a train that is moving with constant velocity. (a) Describe the path of the ball as seen by the passenger. Describe the path as seen by a stationary observer outside the train. (b) How would these obse

> A box rests on the back of a truck. The coefficient of static friction between the box and the bed of the truck is 0.300. (a) When the truck accelerates forward, what force accelerates the box? (b) Find the maximum acceleration the truck can have before

> Three objects are connected by light strings as shown in Figure P4.78. The string connecting the 4.00-kg object and the 5.00-kg object passes over a light frictionless pulley. Determine (a) The acceleration of each object and (b) The tension in the two s

> A boy coasts down a hill on a sled, reaching a level surface at the bottom with a speed of 7.00 m/s. If the coefficient of friction between the sled’s runners and the snow is 0.050 0 and the boy and sled together weigh 600. N, how far does the sled trave

> Choose the best answer. A car traveling at constant speed has a net force of zero acting on it. (a) True (b) False (c) The answer depends on the motion.

> A woman is standing on the Earth. In terms of magnitude, is her gravitational force on the Earth (a) Equal to, (b) Less than, or (c) Greater than the Earth’s gravitational force on her?

> A large crate of mass m is placed on the back of a truck but not tied down. As the truck accelerates forward with an acceleration a, the crate remains at rest relative to the truck. What force causes the crate to accelerate forward? (a) The normal force

> If an object is in equilibrium, which of the following statements is not true? (a) The speed of the object remains constant. (b) The acceleration of the object is zero. (c) The net force acting on the object is zero. (d) The object must be at rest. (e) T

> A crate remains stationary after it has been placed on a ramp inclined at an angle with the horizontal. Which of the following statements must be true about the magnitude of the frictional force that acts on the crate? (a) It is larger than the weight of

> A stuntman sitting on a tree limb wishes to drop vertically onto a horse galloping under the tree. The constant speed of the horse is 10.0 m/s, and the man is initially 3.00 m above the level of the saddle. (a) What must be the horizontal distance betwee

> In Bosnia, the ultimate test of a young man’s courage used to be to jump off a 400 - year - old bridge (destroyed in 1993; rebuilt in 2004) into the River Neretva, 23 m below the bridge. (a) How long did the jump last? (b) How fast was the jumper traveli