allying locally: Alliances between global rivals and host-country factors Competing globally

An emerging literature highlights the relationship between competitive intensity and the likelihood that two rival firms will form an alliance. Placing this argument in an international context, we first suggest that the global competitive intensity between two rival multinationals positively affects the likelihood that they will ally in any host country. Additionally, we highlight how a number of host-country contextual factors moderate the relationship between global competitive intensity and alliance formation in a given host country. We test our hypotheses with a sample of 13 global automobile companies operating in 27 countries, and the results largely support our predictions. 2013 Academy of International Business All rights reserved.

Competing globally, allying locally: Alliances between global rivals and host-country factors