Michigan State University Center for International Business Education and Research C I B E R     N E W S

6 April, 1998 Volume 8, Number 9

The proceedings of the 1998 Academy of International Business Midwest Regional Meetings was recently made available by editor Preet Aulakh of MSU.The meetings were part of the Midwest Business Administration Association Conference held 25-27 March in Chicago. The Review consists of the following 20 papers:

Foreign Expansion Patterns of U.S. Banks: An Empirical Analysis (Winner of the MBAA/Midwest AIB Distinguished Paper Award)
Consumer Goods Marketing in Eastern Ukraine
Exporting: Great Potential to Explore for Small Business Entrpreneurs
Project Centered International Marketing Model
The Western Press Assembles the Jigsaw Puzzle of China
Ascent to Leadership: The Competitiveness of China in Freight Container Manufacturing
The Strategic Use of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Chile
American and Asian Perceptions of Organizational Support
Time Related Risk and Evaluation of Direct Foreign Investments
Strategy Traps in the North American Plastics Industry
Global Power Strategies
Choice of International Entry Mode and Organizational Structure in U.S. Chemical Firms
The Chinese Market: A Case Study in Barriers to Entry
Central Europe: Managing the Risk of Joint Ventures
Strategic Control of International Joint Ventures
The Effects of FDI Inflows on Trade Balances of Host Countries
European Monetary Union: Overview and Preparations
Polish Economics and Politics Since the Defeat of President Walesa
The Cultural Foundations of National Accounting Systems and the Future of International
Accounting Hormonization: Convergence, Divergence, and the Implications for the IASC
The Effects of Cultural Norms and Institutional Pressures on Mergers & Acquisitions

Language Across the Curriculum (L.A.C.) refers to the practice through which the study and use of foreign language takes place across the curriculum. Its purpose is to prepare students for the cross-cultural and multilingual demands and opportunities of a global society. At MSU, a plan is in place to mount four L.A.C. courses in 1998-99, six more in 1999-2000, and an additional six in 2000-2001. Instructors will design specific courses or course modules for students with low, medium, or high levels of proficiency in one of a variety of languages.

Through L.A.C., students can develop their language skills in courses related directly to their major or in courses fulfilling university requirements. As pre-departure or re-immersion experiences for students studying abroad, L.A.C. courses can provide disciplinary/language continuity for students. For most students, language proficiency in their field will enhance employment opportunities and expand career options.

Faculty wishing to develop courses may submit applications for developmental support. Faculty will be granted $1,000 in a research/travel fund if their participation results in a L.A.C. course model scheduled for offering. The first time the L.A.C. course is offered, an additional $1,000 will be deposited in the fund. For more information, please contact Patrick McConeghy, College of Arts and Letters at 355-5360, or see his web site at http://pilot.msu.edu/user/mcconegh/lac-s.html.

The Slavic languages section of the Department of Linguistics and Languages is happy to announce that after a successful launch of first-year Polish last year, they will again be offering the language in 1998-99. Polish is offered under LL413 and LL414, Slavic Languages I: First-year Polish, and requires no prerequisites.

With 511,000 Polish-Americans living in the Detroit area alone, Michigan contains the second-largest Polish population in America. Many MSU students have close ethnic ties to Poland, and recent changes in Eastern and Central Europe have made the country one of the most attractive in the region in terms of travel and business. For more information about the classes, please call Dr. David Prestel, Linguistics and Languages, at 353-0740, or e-mail him at prestel@pilot.msu.edu.

MSU CIBER is proud to have sponsored Dr. Patricia Paulsell, our Director for Business Language Initiatives, in her attendance at both the CIBER Business German Workshop in Ann Arbor and the CIBER Language Conference at UCLA.

At the Business German Workshop, held 7 February at the Goethe Institut, Dr. Paulsell presented MSU's new video "Foreign Languages: Doors to Opportunity", intended to promote and enhance the quality of K-12 foreign language education, and to support MSU's new university-wide foreign language entrance requirement.

At the CIBER Language Conference held 13-14 February, Paulsell chaired the German break-out session, which focused on German language and culture for business purposes, and looked at instructional materials, assessment instruments, recruitment, training and rewarding of teachers, and use of technology.

MSU CIBER was happy to support the travel of 3 MSU AIESEC delegates to attend the National Conference held recently in Portland, Oregon. Students Matt McClanahan, Leah Hasselback and Lynn Else attended the conference, and Lynn served as part of a training team on corporate social responsibility. AIESEC is an international organization that arranges paid internship exchange programs around the world. The internships last from 3-18 months and strive to promote global awareness. MSU's School of Business has a partnership with AIESEC, and generally has about 5 students participating in the program at any given time.

On 27 March Dr. Bruce Blonigen (from the University of Oregon) came to MSU to present his research on foreign direct investment decisions of firms involved in anti-dumping cases. The event was sponsored by MSU CIBER and the Department of Economics.

Blonigen began his lecture by pointing out that there have been over 1000 U.S. anti-dumping cases since 1980, and that many other countries, as a result of the Uruguay Round, are quickly developing their own anti-dumping laws. The speaker, in the paper he presented, was taking a closer look at tariff-jumping FDI.

Blonigen's main hypothesis was that anti-dumping protection in the U.S. leads to increased FDI at the country level. He looked at the FDI responses of Japanese firms to U.S. anti-dumping investigations, but found it to be less than he expected.

The speaker also explained the process of administrative review, whereby a firm can lower the dumping duty by an average of 46% after an affirmative anti-dumping decision. The importer (who is the party liable for the duty) can have the anti-dumping case reviewed each year and the margin determined for the most recent previous period.

The duty on the product at the time of import is the one from the latest review, but only an estimate, since subsequent review of the current period could change the actual liability. This creates uncertain liability on the part of the importer. It also confused a few people in the audience, but Blonigen was able to get everyone back on track before too long.

If you have information or upcoming events of interest to the international business community that you would like published in CIBER News, please call editor Cynthia Hitchcock at 353-4336.

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Document last modified on April 14, 1998