Analysis on the Development of International Competitiveness of Industries and Its Affecting Factors — Competitive Advantage of Nations Perspective

• Main Authors: Hsu Sue-Ming, 許書銘
• Other Authors: Hong Min-Chow
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2000
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/11319487460606201518

博士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 商學研究所 === 88 === In analyzing competitiveness, recent researches have, in response to globalization, gradually shifted their focus from firm level to industrial and national level. Following this trend, this thesis investigates the impact of industrial and national factors on the international competitiveness of industries, based on the perspective of nations’ competitive advantage. In the development of international competitiveness of industries, the results show that, within a country, there exists a certain sequence of development for industries. Furthermore, for countries within the same region, the development of competitiveness for related industries are inter-linked, indicating that shifts in comparative advantages would result in international horizontal specialization and the further development of competitiveness in the same region. The following of flying-geese pattern in East Asia and America illustrates this phenomenon. Within different countries in the same region, industries can be divided into several groups. The development of competitiveness within the groups is quite similar while that across groups are significantly different. Both in East Asia and America, the international horizontal specialization among different groups has significant impact on their international competitiveness. In addition, the differences in competitiveness for ‘total manufacturing’ among countries have diminished. In other words, it shows a convergence in competitiveness for manufacturing in the long run. Contrast to manufacturing sector, the variation of total agriculture competitiveness did not converge until mid-1980s. It is, however, worthwhile to see whether agriculture sector would follow the pattern of development of manufacturing in the future. With regard to the factors affecting international competitiveness of industries, previous studies have based mainly on Porter’s Diamond Model, which focuses on domestic factors. By incorporating international factors into Porter’s Diamond model, this thesis demonstrates that the integration of factors from both domestic and global level could provide better explanations on international competitiveness of industries among different countries. The indices generated in this study indicate that variations in the impact of strength of domestic and international diamonds on international competitiveness of industries exist among industries and regions as well as at different development stages. Generally speaking, the more technology intensive an industry is or the more labor intensive a country is, the more impact strength of international diamond has on their international competitiveness. Meanwhile, different factors play different roles in different models. According to our results, there is a positive correlation between international competitiveness of industries and factor conditions, domestic and international suppliers, and international demand. In the case of technology intensive industries, freer market and larger investment increase international competitiveness. Based on our analysis, we conclude that policies that will increase Taiwan''''s international competitiveness may include encouraging investment, consolidating international horizontal specialization especially in East Asia, adding more value to products, encouraging competitions among high technology industries, etc.