Bilateral FTAs and internationalisation adjustments

Abstract

This article investigates and analyses internationalisation adjustments of Thai multinational enterprises (MNEs). It is based on 10 case studies of Thai MNEs in the food-processing sector. The results highlight how bilateral FTAs can influence developing-country MNEs, based on a micro-level analysis. The empirical evidence indicates that Thai MNEs, in order to internationalise successfully, responded to FTAs by developing towards hybrid competitive strategies. These findings are integrated into a single conceptual framework for analysing the influence of bilateral FTAs on firms’ internationalisation. This offers a basis for further empirical investigation of the dynamics of internationalisation by firms based in emerging economies.