International diversification and performance in agri-food firms

• Autores: Raúl Serrano Lázaro, Marta Fernández Olmos, Vicente José Pinilla Navarro
• Localización: Documentos de trabajo ( Universidad de Zaragoza. Facultad de Economía y Empresa ), ISSN-e 2171-6668, Nº. 1, 2015
• Idioma: inglés
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• Dialnet Métricas: 3 Citas
• Resumen

  • This paper studies the relationship between international diversification and performance in agri-food firms In line with the recent literature, it analyses the effects of the degree of internationalization using a uniform sample, a long-term focus and a measure that combines export intensity and regional diversification. The study empirically confirms the hypothesis of a horizontal S-curve relationship between diversification and performance and identifies three phases. Novice export firms are found in the first stage; their profits are low because they incur in the initial costs of exporting. Mature companies with a more advanced internationalization process are in the second stage; they benefit from the positive outcomes of operating at a larger scale. Lastly, the third stage contains internationally over-diversified companies; their performance decreases as a result of costs to enter extra-regional markets, which are especially steep in this sector, and dealing with greater organisational complexity