International companies tackle world trade challenges

The World Trade Organization may paint a glum picture for world trade, but Professor Paul Beamish says current concerns, such as Brexit and changes to the Chinese economy, are no different than previous hurdles faced by transnational companies.

In an interview with CyC Prisma, a publication from Spanish credit insurance company, Crédito y Caución, Beamish, who is director of Ivey’s International Business Institute, says transnational companies have already coped with economic cycles and changes in the global economy, both in terms of communication technologies and new market opportunities. He says the advantages to going abroad outweigh the challenges.

“Transnational companies are fully aware of the overwhelming advantages of selling and investing abroad. Therefore, recent hiccups in world trade should not, and will not, trigger radical changes in their behaviour,” he said.

Instead he says management inertia or underestimating competitors in emerging markets are more immediate threats to international companies.