Review article
EFFICIENCY OF CORPORATE INTERNATIONAL DIVERISIFICATION: EVIDENCE FROM DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Irina V. Ivashkovskaya
; National Research University, Higher School of Economics, Russia
Dmitry Y. Shcherbakov
; National Research University, Higher School of Economics, Russia
Abstract
During the last two decades corporate international diversification became a widely used growth
strategy. However, the majority of scientific researches insist on its value-destroying pattern. Those of
them which were based on accounting studies’ methodology and used current performance measures
are likely to make an incomplete evaluation of corporate performance by accounting either for
operating performance or financial (cost of capital) effects of internationalization. The current paper
proposes a new approach for estimation of internalization-performance relationship which is based on
economic profit concept. It allows to control simultaneously both operating and financial effects of
internationalization on the firms’ current performance. The proposed model has been empirically tested
on a sample of large companies from one of emerging economies - Russia. The results identify a nonlinear
U-shape relationship between a degree of internationalization and companies’ residual income
(economic profit). The relationship is mainly determined by operating performance effects on economic
profit while cost of capital has a modest effect. Overall for the majority of companies international
diversification refers to decrease in economic profit. The results are compared against the Q-Tobin
measure which incorporates expectations about future performance. A joint analysis of current
performance (economic profit) and long-term performance (Q-Tobin) allows to expect the
internationalization benefits to be realized in future. As an implication of the present research for
corporate decision makers it may be stated that at the initial level of international diversification the
internationalization decisions should be made with a high degree of caution. There should be a clear
internationalization strategy based on definite mechanisms of performance improvement. The prestige
and other irrational motives which may lead to the value destruction should be pruned.
Keywords
Corporate international diversification; Corporate performance; Internationalization; Multinational corporations; Residual income
Hrčak ID:
128539
URI
Publication date:
1.3.2014.
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