Source: UNCTAD. (in millions of current USD) Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are a strategy used by firms to expand globally. Since M&A are also financial transactions requiring large amounts of capital, they are linked with boom and bust phases that commonly characterize the financial sector. After a phase of quick
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Global Inflows of Foreign Direct Investments, 1990-2022
Source: UNCTAD. Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) involve direct investments in productive assets by a corporation incorporated in a foreign country. FDIs are correlated with international trade since the additional production capacity brought to bear is often used to increase exports (or imports). A corporation investing in a foreign country is
Share of East Asia in the Value of World Merchandise Trade, 1980-2021
Source: WTO. Since the 1980s, the contribution of East Asia to global trade has increased substantially, notably for its exports. From about 16% of the value of global exports in 1980, this share climbed to about 32% in 2010 and 36% in 2021. This trend can partially be explained by
Types of Competitive Advantages
Nations, regions, and economic sectors can develop competitive advantages over others. However, competitive advantages are usually not permanent since they can be gained and lost. There are three major dimensions over which competitive advantages can be challenged: Depending on the combination of these dimensions, an actor may find itself at
Economic, Transport and Commercial Geography
An understanding of the economic aspects of transportation relies on three interdependent fields of geography, each based on a set of considerations: Economic, transport, and commercial geography are interrelated. There is a close relationship between the sphere of locations (the geographical setting of supply and demand), the sphere of transactions
Share of the World’s GDP, 1CE – 2020
Note: In 1990 Dollars, purchasing power parity.Source: Data compiled by A. Maddison, University of Groningen. Updated with World Bank GDP figures for 2010 and beyond. Historically, the world’s balance of wealth (power) undertook two major divergences. The first divergence was triggered by the industrial revolution (early 19th century), and the
1.5 – Transportation and Commercial Geography
Author: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue Commercial geography looks at trade and transactions in terms of what they involve, how they are generated, and their outcomes. 1. Trade and Commercial Geography Trade, the exchange of goods and services over long distances, and commercial activities, the exchange of products and services at specific
Global Accessibility: Time to the Nearest Large City
Source: Nelson, A. (2008) Estimated travel time to the nearest city of 50,000 or more people in the year 2000. Global Environment Monitoring Unit – Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Ispra Italy. Space-time convergence is far from being a uniform process, as differences in transport infrastructures and basic
Speed Improvement Potential by Transport Mode
Transport improvements have conventionally been linked with improvements in speed as better engines and vehicles were designed and as infrastructure was built to handle faster operations. However, since the 1960s, there has been, for several modes, limited progress. Although the core reasons behind this are related to energy consumption and
Global Space/Time Convergence: Days Required to Circumnavigate the Globe
Note: Initial concept initially developed by McHale, J. (1969) The Future of the Future, New York: George Braziller. Improvements in transport technology enabled a gradual space/time convergence within the global transport system. While distances remain the same in absolute terms, in relative terms (such as time-wise or cost-wise), distances are