Internationalization of the forest industry: a corporate-level analysis
Zhang Y. (2014). Internationalization of the forest industry: a corporate-level analysis. https://doi.org/10.14214/df.180
Abstract
With far-reaching impacts of economic globalization, the internationalization process of the forest industry has been accelerated. Particularly since the 1990s, internationalization has progressed intensively through industry consolidation and production relocation. Forest industry firms have geographically shifted their operations from traditional production bases in developed countries to emerging Asian and Latin American countries. The internationalization process of the forest industry has induced multifaceted concerns from economic, strategic, and environmental perspectives at both country and corporate level. However, the actual consequences of such expansion are still largely unknown. It is therefore important to study the current status of the forest industry’s internationalization process and to explore drivers and goals of this process. The theoretical background of this thesis is mainly based on the internationalization and FDI theories portrayed in international business literature. A systematic literature review, a qualitative case study and cross-sectional regression analysis have been applied methodologically. China is used as an example in two of the empirical studies, as it is the most attractive FDI destination in the global forest sector. This thesis conceptually depicts a framework of the systematic internationalization process of the forest industry. Empirically, three themes are identified as focal topics; namely corporate financial performance, corporate sustainability, and corporate entry mode choice. Managerial implications derived from this thesis indicate that (1) firms could aim for either internationalized or domestic-oriented operational strategies to pursue higher financial performance; (2) firms should implement social and environmental assessment to maintain sustainable overseas operations; and (3) firms ought to accumulate operational experience and familiarity with local culture before investing in a wholly owned subsidiary. In general, this thesis concludes that internationalization is a dynamic process of pursuing sustainable development to tackle physical forest resource constraints, socio-economic challenges, and corporate operational risks at the global operations scale. Topics related to the analysis of new innovative products, collaboration with supporting industries, and the consideration of sustainability as corporate core competitive advantages are worthy of future research aiming to analyze the further internationalization process of the forest industry.
Keywords
Internationalization of the forest industry;
a corporate-level analysis
Published 15 October 2014
Views 3850
Available at https://doi.org/10.14214/df.180 | Download PDF
Original articles
Zhang Y., Toppinen A. and Uusivuori J. (2014). Internationalization of the forest products industry: A synthesis of literature and implications for future research. Forest Policy and Economics 38: 8-16.
Zhang Y., Toppinen A. (2011). Internationalization and financial performance in the global forest industry. International Forestry Review 13(1): 96-105.
Toppinen A., Zhang Y., Hansen E., Korhonen-Kurki K., Li N.(2014). Role of corporate responsibility: Insights from three forest-industry multinationals investing in China. In: Forests under pressure: Local responses to global issues. Katila, P., Galloway, G., Jong, W., Pacheco, P. and Mery, G. (Eds.). IUFRO Special Project on World Forests, Society and Environment. p. 217-228.
Zhang Y., Luo W., Toppinen A. (2014). Determinants of equity-based entry mode choice in the forest sector: The case of China. Scandinavian Journal of Forest Research.