Journal Press India^®

As we welcome the New Year, we also set the tone for exploring new and interesting dimensions in the domain of international business with this issue of FOCUS: Journal of International Business. The issue deals with diverse as well as interdisciplinary topics including framing effects, Investment Development Path, institutional integration, and entrepreneurial growth in agrarian economies.

An interesting paper by Thomas Berger and Tim Ollig, explores how cultural differences influence potential framing effects, which has consequences for both individuals and organizations. Their research focuses on a case study incorporating risk information framed both negatively and positively. Through surveys conducted in Germany and India, the authors find cultural influences stemming from differences in collectivism in each country. However, the role of risk numeracy and cognitive reflection was not clear.

Aarushi Malhotra, in her paper, conducts empirical testing of John Dunning’s Investment Development Path theory in the Indian context to examine long-term developments in India's inward and outward FDI. The study has analysed the annual time series data from 1991 onwards using the quadratic specification model as proposed by Dunning. The analysis indicates that India has reached the stage 3 of the IDP, with a few notable exceptions, the assessed IDP trajectory is in accordance with Dunning's model. A paper dealing with a pertinent theme of regionalism is by Chingshubam Manimohon Singh, Nasir Ahmed Khan and Mayengbam Lalit Singh on the role of institutional integration in economic integration, for the case of India in the BRICS framework. The authors also examine trade creation and diversion of intra BRICS trade using a partial equilibrium tool called SMART.

Two papers in this issue deal with analysis of different dimensions of India’s exports. The paper on ‘Revealed comparative advantage: Analyzing India’s exports to ASEAN during the period 2002-20’ by Vibha Mathur and Shankar Jyoti Doley, identify India’s products with export potential using RCA index. They find that products such as cotton, pharmaceuticals, textiles, pearls and chemicals have a comparative advantage relative to ASEAN countries. Another paper by Barsha Kalita and Pranjal Pratim Dutta examine the export performance of agricultural and allied products for the North-Eastern region of India. The study concludes that the agricultural products of the North-Eastern Region have an advantage in the export of India and growth has been positive post the launching of government’s Act East Policy.

This issue has two review papers. The first one by Sameer Lama and Gautam Kumar reviews the extant literature in the context of FDI, employment and shadow economy. The findings of this study reveal that FDI has a positive impact on the overall economy; however, the result for employment varies on a country-to-country basis. Further, the literature available in the context of informal economy has mainly concentrated on its measurement and few studies have attempted to relate it with FDI, trade liberalization, institutional quality, and corruption. The second review paper by Prinka Dogra, Sunakshi Gupta and Gurleen Kour highlights the entrepreneurial growth in the agrarian economy by systematically analyzing the literature with the help of bibliometric analysis. This issue has an interesting case study of Lockheed Martin by Debapriya Banerjee that demonstrates earning of profits from war.

As always, we extend our gratitude to our authors, reviewers, and the editorial team for their contribution and support in bringing out this issue of FOCUS, and special thanks to our readers for their encouragement and feedback.

Wishing all a happy, healthy and prosperous 2023!

Prof. (Dr.) Niti Bhasin
Editor