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In a globalized world where emerging markets are more important than ever, there is an increasing pressure on international businesses and governments to work together. The set of facilities known as commercial diplomacy combines the interests of both by highlighting new markets and investment opportunities.

In this chapter, we present a literature review based on 56 relevant publications to assess what we currently know of this important activity.

The results indicate that research on commercial diplomacy consists of many subtopics, resulting in a patchy understanding of the topic as a whole.

We discuss why integrative research focusing on the business–government relationship and the organization and the value of commercial diplomacy are needed from an international business perspective.

The leakage reactance end component is calculated by considering the net flux linking the stator end winding when both stator and rotor are excited with currents so that the net flux density in the airgap is zero. The stator and rotor end windings are assumed to consist of coils that close through the airgap by means of fictitious filaments and thus their respective current distributions are represented by systems of closed currents. Iron boundaries other than the end plate are neglected and the end plate is considered to be unsaturated and also a magnetic mirror, i.e. μ=∞, ό=0.

Maximum axial and radial flux densities due to peripheral stator current The flux desnity, Bsper, is found by using the Biot‐Savart law expressed in cylindrical coordinates. Thus

Perceived consumer risk is explored in relation to online (Internet) purchasing using a cross‐national sample (N=562) from the United States, Canada and U.K. Objectives of the study are to determine if experience in online purchasing reduces perceived risk, if perceived risk varies across product/service categories and if certain types of risk are more important in purchasing certain products/services. Lastly, does national culture affect perceptions of risk? Results are discussed and suggestions are offered to managers on how to reduce perceived risk, thus increasing online purchasing in the three countries examined.

Uses a disaggregated model of United Kingdom factor usage to provide estimates of demand and substitution elasticities for energy inputs. Estimates 19 sectors in a two‐stage translog model including technical change, non‐constant returns and four energy inputs. The results show considerable variation between sectors in the sign and size of the elasticities. The disaggregated model allows prediction of the sectoral change in employment as a consequence of an energy price rise, and is consistent with a decline of manufacturing employment in the UK associated with a rise in the aggregate price of energy.

As an exploratory study, the purpose of this paper is to examine the underlying motivations for attending soccer games.

Attendees at two soccer games in Athens, Greece were surveyed about their frequency of attendance at soccer games and their attitudes toward soccer. In total, 252 people from five randomly selected sections of the stadiums participated in the survey.

The results indicate that there are three major motivations – emotional excitement, socialization, and soccer atmospherics – and two identity salience factors – ardent soccer fans and rational soccer fans – for attending soccer games. The most important factor for attendance is being an ardent soccer fan closely followed by the emotional excitement factor. Among the demographic factors considered, only gender significantly affects soccer game attendance.

In contrast to previous studies that are somewhat descriptive, this research explicitly introduces factors related to social identity theory and attempts to predict soccer game attendance on the basis of a scale of factors that focus on the major motivations for attendance of soccer games, identity salience reasons, and demographic factors. The inclusion of social identity theory as a factor in the attendance of soccer games is a major contribution of this study. Contrary to most of the earlier studies, this study showed that the socialization factor is not related to attendance at soccer games.

This study focuses on Egypt’s recent experience with exchange rate policies, examining the existence of spillover effects of exchange rate variations on stock prices across two different de facto regimes and whether these effects, if any, are asymmetric.

The empirical analysis is carried out using a nonlinear autoregressive distributed lag modeling framework, which permits testing for the presence of short- and long-run asymmetries. Relevant local and global factors are also included in the analysis as control variables. The authors divide the entire sample into a soft peg period and a free float one.

Over the soft peg regime period, both positive and negative changes in EGP/USD exchange rates seem to have a significant impact on stock returns, whether in the short or long run. Short-term asymmetric effects vanish in the free float period, while long-term asymmetries continue to exist. By and large, the authors find that currency depreciation tends to exercise a stronger influence on stock returns than does currency appreciation.

The results offer important insights for investors, regulators and policymakers. With the domestic currency depreciation having a negative impact on stock prices, investors should contemplate implementing appropriate currency hedging strategies to abate depreciation risks and, hence, preserve their expected rate of return on the Egyptian pound-denominated investments. In the current post-flotation era, the government could pursue a flexible inflation targeting monetary policy framework, with a view to both lowering the soaring inflation toward an announced target rate and stabilizing economic growth. The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) could adopt indirect monetary policy instruments to secure tightened liquidity conditions. Besides, the CBE could raise policy rates to incentivize people to keep their money in local currency-denominated instruments, instead of dollarizing their savings, thereby relieving banks of foreign currency demand pressures. Nevertheless, while being beneficial to the country’s real economy on several aspects, such contractionary monetary measures may temporarily impinge on stock market performance. Accordingly, policymakers should consider precautionary measures that reduce the potential for price distortions and unnecessary volatility in the stock market.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the current study represents the first attempt to explore the potential impact of exchange rate changes under different regimes on Egypt’s stock market, thus contributing to the relevant research in this area.

The purpose of this study is to develop a conceptual framework for defensive strategy by integrating market entry modes and the typology of firms suggested by Day and Nedungandi, and to attempt to propose how local incumbent firms utilize their mental models in order to react against market entry of new competition in global markets.

The theoretical perspective adopted in the study is how mental models used by incumbent firms influence their reaction to market entry of new competition in developing defensive strategies to defend their markets.

Mental models of incumbent firms, categorized as self‐centered, competitor‐centered, customer‐oriented, and market‐driven firms, impact their reaction and the development of defensive marketing strategies against market entrants using a variety of market entry modes in global markets.

The paper presents an extensive review of the defensive marketing and mental models literature and shows how the way in which incumbent firms react to market entry of new competition contributes to understanding of incumbent reaction to market entry of new competition in global markets. Research directions for future research and managerial implications are also provided.

This paper sets out to question whether managers should really talk of a West/East style of management. It does so by first examining the practices across a variety of Eastern and Western countries. The paper then analyses key changes in the global business environment that are having a huge influence on the adoption of management practices across the globe. There is much evidence to suggest a degree of convergence and this needs to be taken very much on board by firms engaging further in global trade. To assess management practices, this will involve careful analysis of the main organisation of business across various countries, as well as analysis of the environment in which they operate.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the initial mixing of wastewater discharged from submerged outfall diffusers and the influence of port configurations on wastewater distribution based on computational results.

Marine wastewater discharges from multiport diffusers are investigated by numerically solving three-dimensional and uncompressible two-phase flow fields. A mixture model simulates this flow and the standard k-e model to resolve flow turbulence; inter-phase interactions were described in terms of relative slip velocity between phases. Computations were performed for two values of the port spacings s/H with different current Froude numbers F.

Computational results compared well with previous laboratory measurements. Numerical results reveal that for both the closely spaced (s/H=0.21) and widely spaced (s/H=3.0) ports, the normalized dilution Sn becomes independent of F; further, the length of the near field xn and the spreading layer thickness hn are functions of F. For the closely spaced ports, the wastewater discharge behaves like a line plume, the Coanda effect is obvious, quasi-bifurcation is present, horseshoe structures of the jets in the planes are rapidly produced and then squashed and elongated, and the jet trajectories based on maximum velocity precede those based on maximum concentration. For the widely spaced ports, the wastewater discharge behaves like a point plume, the Coanda effect is not obvious, bifurcation is present, horseshoe structures of the jets in the planes are gradually produced and become ellipses, and the jet trajectories based on maximum velocity are similar to those based on maximum concentration.

Semi-empirical equations are presented to predict major near field characteristics. These provide guidance for designing multiport diffusers and assessing environmental impact.