Ludo Cuyvers

Competitive intelligence: construct exploration, validation and equivalence

Purpose – Little empirical research has been conducted on competitive intelligence (CI). This paper aims to contribute to the quantitative strand of the CI literature by exploring and validating the theoretical constructs of the CI process.Design/methodology/approach – Data from 601 questionnaires filled out by South African and Flemish exporters were subjected to exploratory factor analysis and construct equivalence analysis between the sub‐samples.Findings – The results showed that the CI process consists of three constructs, while the context in which CI takes place consists of four constructs. This agrees to some extent with the literature. When verifying the constructs for both cultures it was found that all but one CI context construct can be viewed as equivalent in both groups. Bias analysis identified one item in the questionnaire that was biased. Via regression analysis it was also indicated that the context in which CI takes place influences the CI process to a large extent. The research identif...

A decision support model for the planning and assessment of export promotion activities by government export promotion institutions — the Belgian case

Abstract This model enables the planning and assessment of export promotion activities. The model consists of four consecutive filters that are constructed using and applying a set of selection and decision rules. Information related to country and product category is brought together, and realistic export opportunities for Belgian are finally filtered out.

EDI—A strategic weapon in international trade

Abstract While electronic data interchange will in the long term be a necessity for industry there are problems to be solved before it is generally accepted. Close co-operation between European standard committees and the European community is recommended if European industry as a whole is not to fall behind in the development.

Identifying export opportunities: the case of Thailand

A decision support model is presented and discussed which aims at identifying realistic export opportunities for a given exporting country. The model consists of a screening process of four consecutive filters, through which relevant information on markets (such as country risk indicators, macroeconomic data, imports per product group, etc.) is fed, and which allows the identification and deletion of less interesting market opportunities. Results are reported of the application of this decision support model to the case of Thailand, adapted for an analysis of foreign trade data at the SITC four‐digit level up to 1997. These results are compared with previous results obtained using the same model. In this way, Thailands export opportunities in individual countries, and in the Asia‐Pacific region in particular, are listed and categorised according to criteria such as import market characteristics and Thailands market share in the various markets.

Wage and Employment Effects in the EU of International Trade with the Emerging Economies

The paper investigates whether significant HOS effects are present in the EU from trade liberalization with the emerging economies. Regarding wage inequality, there is only evidence of a trade-induced technological change, but biased towards thelower-skilled-labor-intensive sectors. Relative wages in the EU member states are not affected differently. Trade liberalization under ‘European assumptions’, however, could affect primarily relative factor demand. A flexible cost function approach shows that import competition from the emerging economies influenced relative labor demand in favor of the higher skilled, implying an intrasectoral rather than an intersectoral specialization in skill-intensive activities. JEL no. F11, F14

The Effects of Internationalisation on Domestic Labour Demand by Skills: Firm-Level Evidence for Belgium

We empirically investigate the effects of the internationalisation of Belgian firms on domestic demand for production and non-production workers, which are used as proxies for unskilled and skilled labour. Distinction is made between home-employment effects of firms’ internationalisation, through either international trade or outward foreign direct investment, in highincome countries and in low-income economies. The results of our econometric analysis, using data over 1997-2007, suggest that increasing import shares from low-income countries or investing in those countries significantly reduces demand for low-skilled labour, while it increases demand for skilled labour. An increase in exports generally raises the demand for production workers, while it reduces the demand for non-production workers. However, these effects are reversed in the case of exports to low-income countries. Considering the impact of FDI, our results tentatively suggest that the setting up of a new international investment project has a positive impact on demand for non-production workers one period before it is made. This positive effect is offset in the long run, particularly in the case of investment in low-income countries.

Are blue chip stock market indices good proxies for all-shares market indices? The case of the Brussels Stock Exchange 1833-2005

In this article, we calculate a market-weighted return index for the 20 largest stocks listed on the Brussels Stock Exchange over the period 1833–2005, based on a new, unique and high-quality database. We find that this index captures the most important stylised facts of the value-weighted return of all shares listed on the Brussels Stock Exchange in this period. Our results support the empirical practice of concentrating on just the largest stocks. The indices we construct are based on one of the longest Belgian time series available. The indices take into account the exact dividends, the timing of the dividend cash flows and all capital operations. We are therefore able to decompose total returns into capital gain returns and dividend returns, which is not possible with most historical return series. We show that, to construct a credible return index, it is crucial to fully take into account dividends.

Export Promotion: A Decision Support Model Approach

Export promotion officials are under increasing pressure to allocate their scarce resources in a way that strengthens their countries’ existing exports while also focusing on new opportunity areas. A key component of a successful export promotion drive is the ability to identify the right foreign markets. To this end, Export Promotion – A Decision Support Model Approach offers a refreshingly practical, yet empirically sound and finely tuned, approach to export market selection. Using a multi-stage filtering process, the decision support model (DSM) described in the book systematically screens markets in terms of a myriad of criteria from political and commercial risk and macroeconomic stability, to market size, accessibility and growth prospects – and generates a list of the most promising and realistic markets for various product categories. This helps export promotion officials to prioritise and plan their various initiatives, and reduces the guesswork that often plagues market selection activities. The DSM has been successfully applied to Belgium, South Africa and Thailand, and those researchers who were involved in rolling out the model in these countries have all contributed to the book. The DSM has over the years undergone a number of revisions in response to evolving business practices and the need to fine-tune the model’s results in the face of growing competition and instability in the global trade arena. A particularly progressive step has been the adaptation and application of the DSM for services in South Africa. Besides offering a detailed description of the DSM, and the various stages in its development and validation, the book also provides an overview of other export market selection methods and how they have contributed to export promotion initiatives in different parts of the world. What emerges from this analysis is that the DSM is far more comprehensive than earlier models in that it takes many more factors into account and processes significantly more data in order to compare and rank order markets. In giving a detailed description of the development and application of the model, the book enables other researchers to replicate and/or adapt the model for different countries that specialise in different products and have different production capabilities. In fact, certain chapters constitute a veritable ‘how to’ guide to developing and testing the model in a variety of contexts, with special emphasis on varying economic conditions and export cultures. As not all countries can produce the same amount of empirical data needed to validate the model, the book also offers insight into how to cope with such data limitations. Another important contribution made by the book is that it turns its attention to how to use the results of the model in a practical sense to develop strong export promotion policies and strategies. This is particularly valuable given the ever-shifting dynamics of the global business environment, and the need for governments to remain responsive to new opportunities and challenges. All these features help to elevate the book from the status of a theoretical treatise to more of an operational manual for export promotion agencies tasked with formulating facts-based and resultsdriven promotional strategies as the precursor to in-depth market and competitive intelligence studies. Export Promotion – A Decision Support Model Approach makes a timeous and important contribution to the literature in the export promotion and development fields, and is highly recommended for academics, foreign policy experts, export promotion officials and export managers.

Market-driven Promotion of International Labour Standards in Southeast-Asia – the Corporatization of Social Justice

The expert contributors assess the state-of-the-art with regard to private regulation of food, natural resources and labor conditions. They begin with an introduction to, and discussion of, several leading existing private standards, and go on to assess private food standards and their legitimacy and effectiveness in the context of the global trade regime.

The effects of Belgian outward direct investment in European high‐wage and low‐wage countries on employment in Belgium

Purpose - The paper aims at providing evidence on the impact on employment of outward foreign direct investment, particularly from developed countries into low-wage countries, which is a major concern in many developed countries. Design/methodology/approach - The effects of foreign production undertaken by Belgian foreign-oriented companies on employment in Belgium are investigated by performing econometric tests for complementarity or substitution between home and affiliate employment. The data are from the Amadeus database and consist of a sample of 254 Belgian parent companies with foreign affiliates in low-wage and other high-wage European countries during the 1999-2007 period. Findings - The results show that, given the size of parent production in the home country, Belgian multinational enterprises with foreign affiliates in higher-wage European countries tend to employ more labour at home the more they produce in the host country. This probably reflects the needs of foreign affiliates in higher-wage European countries for management and supervisory services from parent companies. Another explanation might be that Belgian outward FDI is largely vertical. In contrast, no evidence is found about employment reallocation between parents and affiliates operating in lower-wage European countries. Originality/value - The paper provides evidence on overall effects on employment in Belgium of its outward foreign direct investment for the period 1999-2007, i.e. using the most recent data available. In contrast to many other studies, statistical diagnostic tests were carried out to choose the appropriate model to best fit the data.