eTextbook 978-9814738255 Global

Business Today 9th Edition

Visit to download the full and correct content document:
https://ebookmass.com/product/etextbook-978-9814738255-global-business-today-9t
h-edition/
Global
Business
Today

9e
 Innovation and Entrepreneurship Are the Engines Focus on Managerial Implications 117
of Growth 68 Key Terms 120
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Require a Summary 120
Market Economy 68 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 121
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Require Strong Research Task 121
Property Rights 69 Closing Case: World Expo 2020 in Dubai, UAE 122
The Required Political System 69 Endnotes 123
Economic Progress Begets Democracy 70
Chapter Five Ethics, Corporate Social
Geography, Education, and Economic
Responsibility, and
Development 71
Sustainability 127
States in Transition 72
Opening Case: Making Toys Globally 127
The Spread of Democracy 72
Introduction 128
The New World Order and Global Terrorism 74
Ethical Issues in International Business 129
The Spread of Market-Based Systems 75 Employment Practices 130
The Nature of Economic Transformation 77 Human Rights 130
Deregulation 77 Environmental Pollution 132
Privatization 77 Corruption 134
Legal Systems 79 Ethical Dilemmas 136
Implications of Changing Political Economy 79 The Roots of Unethical Behavior 137
Focus on Managerial Implications 80 Personal Ethics 137
Key Terms 84 Decision-Making Processes 138
Summary 84
Organization Culture 139
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 85
Unrealistic Performance Goals 139
Research Task 85
Leadership 139
Closing Case: Revolution in Egypt 86
Societal Culture 139
Endnotes 87
Philosophical Approaches to Ethics 140
Chapter Four Differences in Culture 89 Straw Men 140
Opening Case: Best Buy and eBay in China 89 Utilitarian and Kantian Ethics 142
Introduction 91 Rights Theories 143
What Is Culture? 92 Justice Theories 144
Values and Norms 92 Focus on Managerial Implications 145
Culture, Society, and the Nation-State 94 Key Terms 152
The Determinants of Culture 95 Summary 153
Social Structure 95 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 153
Research Task 154
Individuals and Groups 95
Closing Case: Bitcoin as an Ethical Dilemma 154
Social Stratification 97
Endnotes 155
Religious and Ethical Systems 100
Christianity 102
Islam 103 PART THREE The Global Trade and
Hinduism 106 Investment Environment 158
Buddhism 107 Chapter Six International Trade Theory 159
Confucianism 108 Opening Case: Creating the World’s Biggest Free
Language 109 Trade Zone 159
Spoken Language 110 Introduction 160
Unspoken Language 111 An Overview of Trade Theory 160
Education 111 The Benefits of Trade 161
Culture and Business 112 The Pattern of International Trade 162
Cultural Change 115 Trade Theory and Government Policy 162

Contents vii
Mercantilism 163 Political Arguments for Intervention 203
Absolute Advantage 163 Economic Arguments for Intervention 205
Comparative Advantage 166 The Revised Case for Free Trade 207
The Gains from Trade 167 Retaliation and Trade War 207
Qualifications and Assumptions 168 Domestic Policies 208
Extensions of the Ricardian Model 169 Development of the World Trading System 208
Heckscher-Ohlin Theory 174 From Smith to the Great Depression 209
The Leontief Paradox 174 1947–1979: GATT, Trade Liberalization, and
The Product Life-Cycle Theory 175 Economic Growth 209
Product Life-Cycle Theory in the Twenty-First 1980–1993: Protectionist Trends 209
Century 176 The Uruguay Round and the World Trade
New Trade Theory 176 Organization 210
Increasing Product Variety and Reducing WTO: Experience to Date 211
Costs 178 The Future of the WTO: Unresolved Issues and the
Economies of Scale, First-Mover Advantages, and Doha Round 212
the Pattern of Trade 179 Focus on Managerial Implications 216
Implications of New Trade Theory 179 Key Terms 217
National Competitive Advantage: Porter’s Summary 218
Diamond 180 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 218
Factor Endowments 181 Research Task 219
Demand Conditions 182 Closing Case: China Limits Exports of Rare Earth
Materials 219
Related and Supporting Industries 182
Endnotes 220
Firm Strategy, Structure, and Rivalry 182
Evaluating Porter’s Theory 183 Chapter Eight Foreign Direct Investment 223
Focus on Managerial Implications 183 Opening Case: Foreign Direct Investment
Key Terms 185 in Nigeria 223
Summary 185 Introduction 224
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 186 Foreign Direct Investment in the World
Research Task 187 Economy 224
Closing Case: The Rise of India’s Drug Trends in FDI 224
Industry 187 The Direction of FDI 225
Appendix A International Trade and the Balance The Source of FDI 226
of Payments 189 The Form of FDI: Acquisitions versus Greenfield
Endnotes 192 Investments 228
Chapter Seven Government Policy and Theories of Foreign Direct Investment 228
International Trade 195 Why Foreign Direct Investment? 228
Opening Case: Sugar Subsidies Drive Candy The Pattern of Foreign Direct Investment 232
Makers Abroad 195 The Eclectic Paradigm 232
Introduction 196 Political Ideology and Foreign Direct
Instruments of Trade Policy 197 Investment 234
Tariffs 197 The Radical View 234
Subsidies 198 The Free Market View 234
Import Quotas and Voluntary Export Pragmatic Nationalism 235
Restraints 199 Shifting Ideology 236
Local Content Requirements 200 Benefits and Costs of FDI 237
Administration Policies 201 Host-Country Benefits 237
Antidumping Policies 201 Host-Country Costs 239
The Case for Government Intervention 202 Home-Country Benefits 241

viii Contents
 Home-Country Costs 241
International Trade Theory and FDI 241
Government Policy Instruments and FDI 242
Home-Country Policies 242
Host-Country Policies 243
International Institutions and the Liberalization
of FDI 244
Focus on Managerial Implications 244
Key Terms 247
Summary 247
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 247
Research Task 248
Closing Case: Foreign Retailers in India 248
Endnotes 249
Chapter Nine Regional Economic
Integration 253
Opening Case: Tomato Wars 253
Introduction 254
Levels of Economic Integration 256
The Case for Regional Integration 257
The Economic Case for Integration 258
The Political Case for Integration 258
Impediments to Integration 258
The Case against Regional Integration 259
Regional Economic Integration in Europe 260
Evolution of the European Union 260
Political Structure of the European Union 260
The Single European Act 263
The Establishment of the Euro 265
Enlargement of the European Union 269
Regional Economic Integration in the
Americas 270
The North American Free Trade Agreement 270
The Andean Community 273
Mercosur 274
Central American Common Market, CAFTA, and
CARICOM 274
Free Trade Area of the Americas 275
Regional Economic Integration Elsewhere 275
Association of Southeast Asian Nations 276
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation 277
Regional Trade Blocs in Africa 278
Focus on Managerial Implications 278
Key Terms 280
Summary 280
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 281
Research Task 281
Closing Case: I Want My Greek TV! 282
Endnotes 283
PART FOUR The Global Monetary
System 284
Chapter Ten The Foreign Exchange Market 285
Opening Case: Embraer and the Wild Ride of the
Brazilian Real 285
Introduction 286
The Functions of the Foreign Exchange Market 287
Currency Conversion 287
Insuring against Foreign Exchange Risk 289
The Nature of the Foreign Exchange Market 291
Economic Theories of Exchange Rate
Determination 292
Prices and Exchange Rates 293
Interest Rates and Exchange Rates 298
Investor Psychology and Bandwagon
Effects 299
Summary of Exchange Rate Theories 300
Exchange Rate Forecasting 300
The Efficient Market School 300
The Inefficient Market School 301
Approaches to Forecasting 301
Currency Convertibility 302
Focus on Managerial Implications 303
Key Terms 306
Summary 306
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 307
Research Task 307
Closing Case: The Rise (and Fall) of the
Japanese Yen 308
Endnotes 309
Chapter Eleven The International Monetary
System 311
Opening Case: The IMF and Iceland’s Economic
Recovery 311
Introduction 312
The Gold Standard 313
Mechanics of the Gold Standard 313
Strength of the Gold Standard 314
The Period between the Wars, 1918–1939 314
The Bretton Woods System 315
The Role of the IMF 315
The Role of the World Bank 316
The Collapse of the Fixed Exchange Rate
System 317
Contents ix
The Floating Exchange Rate Regime 318 International Strategy 360
The Jamaica Agreement 318 The Evolution of Strategy 361
Exchange Rates since 1973 318 Strategic Alliances 362
Fixed versus Floating Exchange Rates 322 The Advantages of Strategic Alliances 362
The Case for Floating Exchange Rates 322 The Disadvantages of Strategic Alliances 363
The Case for Fixed Exchange Rates 323 Making Alliances Work 364
Who Is Right? 324 Key Terms 366
Exchange Rate Regimes in Practice 324 Summary 366
Pegged Exchange Rates 324 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 367
Currency Boards 325 Research Task 367
Crisis Management by the IMF 326 Closing Case: Ford’s Global Strategy 367
Endnotes 368
Financial Crises in the Post–Bretton Woods
Era 326 Chapter Thirteen Entering Foreign
Evaluating the IMF’s Policy Prescriptions 328 Markets 371
Focus on Managerial Implications 330 Opening Case: Market Entry at Starbucks 371
Key Terms 333 Introduction 372
Summary 333 Basic Entry Decisions 373
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 334 Which Foreign Markets? 373
Research Task 334 Timing of Entry 374
Closing Case: Currency Trouble in Malawi 334 Scale of Entry and Strategic
Endnotes 335 Commitments 376
Market Entry Summary 377
Entry Modes 377
PART FIVE The Strategy of
Exporting 378
International Business 336
Turnkey Projects 379
Chapter Twelve The Strategy of International Licensing 380
Business 337 Franchising 382
Opening Case: IKEA 337 Joint Ventures 383
Introduction 338 Wholly Owned Subsidiaries 384
Strategy and the Firm 339 Selecting an Entry Mode 385
Value Creation 339 Core Competencies and Entry Mode 386
Strategic Positioning 341 Pressures for Cost Reductions and Entry
Operations: The Firm as a Value Chain 342 Mode 386
Global Expansion, Profitability, and Profit Greenfield Venture or Acquisition? 387
Growth 346 Pros and Cons of Acquisition 387
Expanding the Market: Leveraging Products Pros and Cons of Greenfield Ventures 389
and Competencies 347 Greenfield Venture or Acquisition? 390
Location Economies 348 Key Terms 390
Experience Effects 350 Summary 390
Leveraging Subsidiary Skills 352 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 391
Profitability and Profit Growth Summary 352 Research Task 392
Cost Pressures and Pressures for Local Closing Case: JCB in India 392
Responsiveness 353 Endnotes 393
Pressures for Cost Reductions 353
Pressures for Local Responsiveness 354
Choosing a Strategy 357 PART SIX International Business
Global Standardization Strategy 357 Functions 396
Localization Strategy 359 Chapter Fourteen Exporting, Importing,
Transnational Strategy 359 and Countertrade 397

x Contents
Opening Case: Growing Through Exports 397
Introduction 398
The Promise and Pitfalls of Exporting 398
Improving Export Performance 401
An International Comparison 401
Information Sources 401
Utilizing Export Management Companies 402
Export Strategy 403
Export and Import Financing 405
Lack of Trust 405
Letter of Credit 406
Draft 407
Bill of Lading 408
A Typical International Trade Transaction 408
Export Assistance 409
Export–Import Bank 409
Export Credit Insurance 410
Countertrade 410
The Popularity of Countertrade 411
Types of Countertrade 411
Pros and Cons of Countertrade 413
Key Terms 413
Summary 414
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 414
Research Task 415
Closing Case: MD International 415
Endnotes 416
Chapter Fifteen Global Production and Supply
Chain Management 419
Opening Case: Apple: The Best Supply Chain in
the World? 419
Introduction 421
Strategy, Production, and Supply Chain
Management 421
Where to Produce 424
Country Factors 424
Technological Factors 426
Production Factors 428
The Hidden Costs of Foreign Locations 431
Make-or-Buy Decisions 433
Global Supply Chain Functions 436
Global Logistics 436
Global Purchasing 438
Managing a Global Supply Chain 439
Role of Just-in-Time Inventory 440
Role of Information Technology 440
Coordination in Global Supply Chains 441
Interorganizational Relationships 441
Key Terms 443
Summary 443
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 444
Research Task 445
Closing Case: H&M: The Retail–Clothing
Giant 445
Endnotes 446
Chapter Sixteen Global Marketing and
Research and
Development 449
Opening Case: Global Branding of Avengers
and Iron Man 449
Introduction 450
Globalization of Markets and Brands 452
Market Segmentation 453
Product Attributes 455
Cultural Differences 455
Economic Development 456
Product and Technical Standards 456
Distribution Strategy 457
Differences Between Countries 457
Choosing a Distribution Strategy 460
Communication Strategy 461
Barriers to International Communication 461
Push Versus Pull Strategies 462
Global Advertising 464
Pricing Strategy 466
Price Discrimination 466
Strategic Pricing 468
Regulatory Influences on Prices 469
Configuring the Marketing Mix 469
International Market Research 472
Product Development 475
The Location of R&D 476
Integrating R&D, Marketing,
and Production 477
Cross-Functional Teams 478
Building Global R&D Capabilities 478
Key Terms 480
Summary 480
Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 481
Research Task 481
Closing Case: Domino’s Pizza Worldwide 482
Endnotes 483
Chapter Seventeen Global Human Resource
Management 487
Opening Case: The Strategic Role of Human
Resources at IBM 487

Contents xi
Introduction 488 The Concerns of Organized Labor 505
The Strategic Role of International HRM 489 The Strategy of Organized Labor 505
Staffing Policy 490 Approaches to Labor Relations 506
Types of Staffing Policy 490 Key Terms 507
Expatriate Managers 494 Summary 507
The Global Mindset 497 Critical Thinking and Discussion Questions 508
Training and Management Development 498 Research Task 508
Training for Expatriate Managers 498 Closing Case: MMC China 508
Endnotes 509
Repatriation of Expatriates 499
Management Development and Strategy 500 GLOSSARY 512
Performance Appraisal 501
PHOTO CREDITS 520
Performance Appraisal Problems 501
NAME INDEX 521
Guidelines for Performance Appraisal 502
SUBJECT INDEX 522
Compensation 502
ACRONYMS
National Differences in Compensation 502
COUNTRIES AND THEIR CAPITALS
Expatriate Pay 503
International Labor Relations 505 WORLD MAP

xii Contents
 the proven
choice for
international
business
Current. Application Rich. Relevant. Integrated.
Global Business Today is intended for the first international business course at either the
Undergraduate or MBA level. As the market leader, the goal in creating this package has
been to set a new standard for international business teaching. We have attempted to cre-
ate resources that
• Are comprehensive and up-to-date.
• Go beyond an uncritical presentation and shallow explanation of the body of
knowledge.
• Focus on rich applications of international business concepts.
• Tightly integrate progression of topics among chapters.
• Are fully integrated with results-driven technology.
Over the years, and through now nine editions, Dr. Charles Hill has worked hard to adhere
to these goals. The ninth edition, with Dr. Tomas Hult as a co-author, follows the same ap-
proach. It has not always been easy. An enormous amount has happened over the past de-
cade, both in the real world of economics, politics, and business, and in the academic world
of theory and empirical research. Often, we have had to significantly rewrite chapters, scrap
old examples, bring in new ones, incorporate new theory and evidence into the material,
and phase out older theories that are increasingly less relevant to the modern and dynamic
world of international business. As noted later, there have been significant changes in this
edition—and that will no doubt continue to be the case in the future. In deciding what
changes to make, we have been guided not only by our own reading, teaching, and re-
search, but also by the invaluable feedback we received from professors and students
around the world who use the product, from reviewers, and from the editorial staff at
McGraw-Hill. Our thanks go out to all of them.

xiii
 Comprehensive and Up-to-Date
To be comprehensive, an international business package must
• Explain how and why the world’s countries differ.
• Present a thorough review of the economics and politics of international trade and
investment.
• Explain the functions and form of the global monetary system.
• Examine the strategies and structures of international businesses.
• Assess the special roles of an international business’s various functions.
This text has always endeavored to do all of these things. Too many other products have
paid insufficient attention to the strategies and structures of international businesses and to
the implications of international business for firms’ various functions. This omission has
been a serious deficiency. Many of the students in these international business courses will
soon be working in international businesses, and they will be expected to understand the
implications of international business for their organization’s strategy, structure, and func-
tions. This package pays close attention to these issues.
Comprehensiveness and relevance also require coverage of the major theories. It has always
been a goal to incorporate the insights gleaned from recent academic work into the work.
Consistent with this goal, over the past nine editions, insights from the following research
have been incorporated:
• The new trade theory and strategic trade policy.
• The work of Nobel Prize–winning economist Amartya Sen on economic development.
• The work of Hernando de Soto on the link between property rights and economic
development.
• Samuel Huntington’s influential thesis on the “clash of civilizations.”
• The new growth theory of economic development championed by Paul Romer and
Gene Grossman.
• Empirical work by Jeffrey Sachs and others on the relationship between international
trade and economic growth.
• Michael Porter’s theory of the competitive advantage of nations.
• Robert Reich’s work on national competitive advantage.
• The work of Nobel Prize winner Douglass North and others on national institutional
structures and the protection of property rights.
• The market imperfections approach to foreign direct investment that has grown out of
Ronald Coase and Oliver Williamson’s work on transaction cost economics.
• Bartlett and Ghoshal’s research on the transnational corporation.
• The writings of C. K. Prahalad and Gary Hamel on core competencies, global
competition, and global strategic alliances.
• Insights for international business strategy that can be derived from the resource-based
view of the firm.
• Paul Samuelson’s critique of free trade theory.
In addition to including leading-edge theory, in light of the fast-changing nature of the
international business environment, we have made every effort to ensure that this product
was as up-to-date as possible when it went to press. A significant amount has happened in
the world since we began revisions of this book. By 2014, more than $3.5 trillion per day
was flowing across national borders. The size of such flows fueled concern about the ability
of short-term speculative shifts in global capital markets to destabilize the world economy.
The World Wide Web emerged from nowhere to become the backbone of an emerging
global network for electronic commerce. The world continued to become more global.
Several Asian Pacific economies, most notably China, continued to grow their economies
at a rapid rate. New multinationals continued to emerge from developing nations in addi-
tion to the world’s established industrial powers. Increasingly, the globalization of the
world economy affected a wide range of firms of all sizes, from the very large to the very

xiv The Proven Choice for International Business

small. And unfortunately, in the wake of the terrorist attacks on the United States that took
place September 11, 2001, global terrorism and the attendant geopolitical risks emerged as
a threat to global economic integration and activity.

New in the Ninth Edition

The most obvious change to the ninth edition of Global Business Today is the addition of a
co-author, G. Tomas M. Hult. Professor Hult is the John W. Byington Endowed Chair,
Professor of Marketing and International Business, and Director of the International Busi-
ness Center in the Eli Broad College of Business at Michigan State University. He is a
notable scholar in the area of international business, marketing and management, and a
well-known expert on global supply chain management, global strategy, and marketing
strategy. In addition, he has played a major role in the Academy of International Business,
and is currently the Executive Director and Foundation President of the Academy of Inter-
national Business.
I am delighted to have Tomas on the book. Tomas has been a long-term user of the book
and has contributed end-of-chapter material to the book for many editions (he is responsi-
ble for the Research Tasks that use Michigan State’s globalEDGE.msu.edu knowledge re-
source). I believe that his skills complement my own. His energy, enthusiasm, and knowledge
base should help make an already strong book even better. Tomas has made significant new
contributions to all chapters in this edition, including most notably Chapters 4 and 5 on
Culture and Ethics/CSR/Sustainability and Chapters 15 and 16 on Global Production and
Supply Chain Management and Marketing and R&D.
The success of the first eight editions of Global Business Today was based in part upon the
incorporation of leading-edge research into the text, the use of up-to-date examples and
statistics to illustrate global trends and enterprise strategy, and the discussion of current
events within the context of the appropriate theory. Building on these strengths, our goals
for the ninth revision have been to:
1. Incorporate new insights from recent scholarly research wherever appropriate.
2. Make sure the content of the text covers all appropriate issues.
3. Make sure the text is as up-to-date as possible with regard to current events, statistics,
and examples.
4. Add new and insightful opening and closing cases in most chapters.
5. Add question-driven boxed materials in each chapter to motivate class discussion.
6. Incorporate value-added globalEDGE features in every chapter.
7. Connect every chapter to a focus on managerial implications.
As part of the overall revision process, changes have been made to every chapter in the book.
All statistics have been updated to incorporate the most recently available data, which typ-
ically refers to 2013. These data were mostly released by national and international agen-
cies early in 2014. For example: New examples, cases, and boxes have been added and older
examples updated to reflect new developments. For example, in Chapter 2, (1) the Opening
Case looks at how the policies of Russian President Vladimir Putin have shaped the eco-
nomic, political, and legal systems of that nation and affect the attractiveness of Russia as a
destination for international business, (2) a new Management Focus feature discusses allega-
tions that Walmart violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act while doing business in
Mexico; and (3) a new Closing Case discusses the economic growth in Ghana.
New material has been inserted wherever appropriate to reflect recent academic work or
important current events. Detailed discussion of the 2008–2009 global financial crisis and its
aftermath, including the 2010–2013 sovereign debt crises in the Euro Zone and its implica-
tions for international business, have been included in many chapters. Similarly, further
discussion of the unrest that continues to sweep across the Middle East following the Arab
Spring of 2011 and the ongoing turmoil in Egypt and Syria has been added to the book.
Importantly, for every chapter, the ninth edition of Global Business Today has two new
features spearheaded by Tomas. First, we added question-driven materials in each chapter
to motivate class discussion. These are four “boxes” per chapter that illustrate a specific

The Proven Choice for International Business xv

 situation and then ask students to “debate” the issue. These “question boxes” are great
ways to practically illustrate the chapter material and get the students engaged. Second,
we incorporated value-added globalEDGE features in every chapter. The Google
number-one ranked globalEDGE.msu.edu site (for “international business resources”) is
used in each chapter to add value to the chapter material and provide up-to-date data and
information.
In addition to updating all statistics, figures, and maps to incorporate most recent pub-
lished data major chapter-by-chapter changes include the following:

CHAPTER 1: GLOBALIZATION
• New Opening Case: The Globalization of Production at Boeing.
• New Closing Case: Who Makes the Apple iPhone?

CHAPTER 2: NATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN POLITICAL, ECONOMIC,

AND LEGAL SYSTEMS
• New Opening Case: Putin’s Russia.
• Discussion of pseudo democracies added to section on democracy and totalitarianism.
These are countries that are democratic in name only where authoritarian elements
have captured some or much of the machinery of state and use this in an attempt to
deny basic political and civil liberties (e.g., as in Russia).
• New Management Focus: Did Walmart Violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act?
• New Closing Case: Ghana: An African Dynamo.

CHAPTER 3: NATIONAL DIFFERENCES IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

• New Opening Case: Political and Economic Reform in Myanmar.
• Extended discussion of the 2008–2009 global financial crisis as an example of economic
risk.
• New Closing Case: Revolution in Egypt.

CHAPTER 4: DIFFERENCES IN CULTURE

• New Opening Case: Best Buy and eBay in China.
• Deeper treatment of culture, values, and norms.
• Social media issues inserted into the culture discussion.
• Added four basic principles to social stratification.
• Added depth and coverage of the economic implications of Buddhism.
• Updated the Hofstede culture framework with new research.
• New Closing Case: World Expo 2020 in Dubai, UAE.

CHAPTER 5: ETHICS, CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, AND

SUSTAINABILITY
• New Opening Case: Making Toys Globally.
• Deeper treatment of corruption.
• New focus on corporate social responsibility (CSR).
• Added Management Focus on Stora Enso to illustrate CSR.
• New focus on sustainability.
• Added Management Focus on Umicore to illustrate global sustainability.
• New Closing Case: Bitcoins as an Ethical Dilemma.

CHAPTER 6: INTERNATIONAL TRADE THEORY

• New Opening Case: Creating the World’s Biggest Free Trade Zone.
• New Closing Case: The Rise of India’s Drug Industry.

CHAPTER 7: GOVERNMENT POLICY AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE

• New Opening Case: Sugar Subsidies Drive Candy Makers Abroad.
• New Country Focus: Are the Chinese Illegally Subsidizing Auto Exports?
• New Closing Case: China Limits Exports of Rare Earth Materials.

xvi The Proven Choice for International Business

CHAPTER 8: FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT
• New Opening Case: Foreign Direct Investment in Nigeria.
• New Closing Case: Foreign Retailers in India.

CHAPTER 9: REGIONAL ECONOMIC INTEGRATION

• New Opening Case: Tomato Wars.
• New Closing Case: I Want My Greek TV!

CHAPTER 10: THE FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET

• New Opening Case: Embraer and the Wild Ride of the Brazilian Real.
• New Closing Case: The Rise (and Fall) of the Japanese Yen.

CHAPTER 11: THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY SYSTEM

• New Opening Case: The IMF and Iceland’s Economic Recovery.
• New Closing case: Currency Trouble in Malawi.

CHAPTER 12: THE STRATEGY OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

• New Opening Case: IKEA.
• Discussion of the rise of regionalism added to section on Pressures for Local
Responsiveness.
• New Closing Case: Ford’s Global Strategy.

CHAPTER 13: ENTERING FOREIGN MARKETS

• New Opening Case: Market Entry at Starbucks.
• New Closing Case: JCB in India.

CHAPTER 14: EXPORTING, IMPORTING AND COUNTERTRADE

• New Opening Case: Growing Through Exports.
• New Closing Case: MD International.

CHAPTER 15: GLOBAL PRODUCTION AND SUPPLY CHAIN

MANAGEMENT
• New Opening Case: Apple: The Best Supply Chains in the World?
• Integration of the complete supply chain (logistics, purchasing, production, and
operations).
• New section on Strategic Roles for Production Facilities.
• New section on Make-or-Buy Decisions.
• New section on Global Supply Chain Functions.
• New text for the Role of Information Technology.
• New section on Coordination of Global Supply Chains.
• New section on Interorganizational Relationships.
• New Closing Case: H&M: The Retail Clothing Giant.

CHAPTER 16: GLOBAL MARKETING AND RESEARCH AND

DEVELOPMENT
• New Opening Case: Global Branding of Avengers and Iron Man.
• Revised section on Globalization of Markets and Brands.
• Revised section on Configuring the Marketing Mix, now with a new table with sample
measures.
• New section on International Market Research, including company examples and six
basic steps.
• Revised positioning of the Product Development section.
• Heavily Revised Closing Case: Domino’s Pizza Worldwide.

The Proven Choice for International Business xvii

 CHAPTER 17: GLOBAL HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• New Opening Case: The Strategic Role of Human Resources at IBM.
• New Closing Case: MMC China.

Beyond Uncritical Presentation and

Shallow Explanation
Many issues in international business are complex and thus necessitate considerations of
pros and cons. To demonstrate this to students, we have adopted a critical approach that
presents the arguments for and against economic theories, government policies, business
strategies, organizational structures, and so on.
Related to this, we have attempted to explain the complexities of the many theories and
phenomena unique to international business so the student might fully comprehend the
statements of a theory or the reasons a phenomenon is the way it is. We believe that these
theories and phenomena are explained in more depth in this work than they are in the com-
petition, which seem to use the rationale that a shallow explanation is little better than no
explanation. In international business, a little knowledge is indeed a dangerous thing.

Focuses on Rich Applications of International

Business Concepts
We have always believed that it is important to show students how the material covered in
the text is relevant to the actual practice of international business. This is explicit in the
later chapters of the book, which focus on the practice of international business, but it is
not always obvious in the first half of the book, which considered many macroeconomic
and political issues, from international trade theory and foreign direct investment flows to
the IMF and the influence of inflation rates on foreign exchange quotations. Accordingly,
at the end of each chapter in Parts Two, Three, and Four—where the focus is on the envi-
ronment of international business, as opposed to particular
hiL12915_ch02_036-059.indd Page 55 12/09/14 9:57 AM f-w-143
firms—there is a section titled
/207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles

Focus on Managerial Implications. In this section, the managerial implications of the

material discussed in the chapter are clearly explained.

FOCUS ON MANAGERIAL IMPLICATIONS

THE MACRO ENVIRONMENT INFLUENCES MARKET

ATTRACTIVENESS
The material discussed in this chapter has two broad implications for international busi- LO 2-4
ness. First, the political, economic, and legal systems of a country raise important ethical Explain the implications for
management practice of national
issues that have implications for the practice of international business. For example, what differences in political economy.
ethical implications are associated with doing business in totalitarian countries where citi-
zens are denied basic human rights, corruption is rampant, and bribes are necessary to gain

Another tool that I have used to focus on managerial implications are Management
hiL12915_ch02_036-059.indd Page 52 12/09/14 9:57 AM f-w-143 /207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles
Focus boxes. There is at least one Management Focus in most chapters. Like the opening
cases, the purpose of these boxes is to illustrate the relevance of chapter material for the
practice of international business.

management FOCUS
Did Walmart Violate the Foreign Corrupt
Practices Act?
In the early 2000s, Walmart wanted to build a new store in San Juan
Teotihuacan, Mexico, barely a mile from ancient pyramids that drew
tourists from around the world. The owner of the land was happy to sell
to Walmart, but one thing stood in the way of a deal—the city’s new
For several years nothing more happened; then, in April 2012, The
New York Times published an article detailing bribery by Walmart. The
Times cited the changed zoning map and several other examples of
bribery by Walmart—for example, eight bribes totaling $341,000 en-
abled Walmart to build a Sam’s Club in one of Mexico City’s most
densely populated neighborhoods without a construction license, or an
environmental permit, or an urban impact assessment, or even a traffic

xviii The Proven Choice for International Business

 hiL12915_ch02_036-059.indd Page 57 12/09/14 9:57 AM f-w-143 /207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles

hiL12915_ch02_036-059.indd Page 39 12/09/14 9:56 AM f-w-143 /207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles

In addition, each chapter begins with an Opening Case that sets the stage for the chap-
ter content and familiarizes students with how real international companies conduct busi-
ness. There is also a Closing Case to each chapter. These cases are also designed to illustrate
the relevance of chapter material for the practice of international business as well as to
provide continued insight into how real companies handle those issues.

Putin’s Russia

opening case
he modern Russia state was born in 1991 after the dramatic collapse of the Soviet Union. Early in the

T post-Soviet era, Russia embraced ambitious policies designed to transform a communist dictatorship
with a centrally planned economy into democratic state with a market based economic system. The
policies, however, were imperfectly implemented. Political reform left Russia with a strong presidency
that—in hindsight—had the ability to subvert the democratic process. On the economic front, the privatiza-
tion of
hiL12915_ch04_088-125.indd many
Page state-owned
121 12/09/14 enterprises
10:05 AM f-w-143 was done in such a way as to leave large shareholdings in the hands
/207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles
of the politically connected, many of whom were party officials and factory managers under the old Soviet
system. Corruption was also endemic, and organized crime was able to seize control of some newly priva-
tized enterprises. In 1998, the poorly managed Russian economy went through a financial crisis that nearly

Ghana: An African Dynamo c lo

osing case

The West African nation of Ghana has emerged as one of the fastest-
growing countries in sub-Saharan Africa during the last decade. Between
2000 and 2013, Ghana’s average annual growth rate in GDP was over
7.5 percent, making it the fastest-growing economy in Africa. In 2011,
this country of 25 million people became Africa’s newest middle-income
nation. Driving this growth has been strong demand for two of Ghana’s
major exports—gold and cocoa—as well as the start of oil production in
2010. Indeed, due to recent oil discoveries, Ghana is set to become one of
states of eastern Europe. In addition, he was pressured by Western gov-
ernments and the International Monetary Fund to embrace democratic
reforms and economic liberalization policies (the IMF was lending money
to Ghana).
Presidential elections were held in 1992. Prior to the elections, the
ban on political parties was lifted, restrictions on the press were removed,
and all parties were given equal access to the media. Rawlings won the
election, which foreign observers declared to be “free and fair.” Ghana

Connect® International Business is another tool that provides for application of con-
cepts via the great variety of Interactive Application exercises included in this homework
assignment and assessment system. For more information, see page xxi.
To help students go a step further in expanding their application level understanding of
international business, each chapter incorporates a globalEdge feature authored by Tomas
Hult, as well as two globalEDGE research tasks designed and written by Tunga Kiyak and
the team at Michigan State University’s globalEDGE.msu.edu site to dovetail with the con-
tent just covered.

Get Insights by Country

The “Get Insights by Country” section of globalEDGE (globalEDGE.msu.
edu/global-insights/by/country) is your source for information and sta-
tistical data for nearly every country around the world (more than 200
countries). As related to Chapter 2 of the text, globalEDGE has a wealth
of information and data on national differences in political economy.
These differences are available across a dozen menu categories in the
country sections (e.g., economy, history, government, culture, risk). The
“Executive Memos” on each country page are also great for abbrevi-
ated fingertip access to current information. At a minimum, we suggest
that you take a look at the country pages of the United Kingdom and
Sweden because the authors of this text are from those countries—
have you figured out who is from the UK and who is from Sweden yet?

Research Task http://globalEDGE.msu.edu

Use the globalEDGE website (globalEDGE.msu.edu) to
complete the following exercises:
2. Typically, cultural factors drive the differences in
1. You are preparing for a business trip to Chile where
you will need to interact extensively with local
professionals. Therefore, you would like to collect
information regarding local culture and business
practices prior to your departure. A colleague from
Latin America recommends you visit the “Centre for
Intercultural Learning” and read through the country
h d df hl h
characteristics that may affect business interactions in
this country.
business etiquette encountered during international
business travel. In fact, Middle Eastern cultures exhibit
significant differences in business etiquette when
compared to Western cultures. Prior to leaving for
your first business trip to the region, a colleague
informed you that a guide named Business Etiquette
around the World may help you. Using this guide,

The Proven Choice for International Business xix

 Integrated Progression of Topics
A weakness of many texts is that they lack a tight, integrated flow of topics from chapter to
chapter. In Chapter 1 of this book, students will learn how the book’s topics are related to
each other. We have achieved integration by organizing the material so that each chapter
builds on the material of the previous ones in a logical fashion.

PART ONE Chapter 1 provides an overview of the key issues to be addressed and ex-
plains the plan of the book.

PART TWO Chapters 2, 3, and 4 focus on national differences in political economy and
culture, and Chapter 5 examines ethical issues in international business. Most international
business textbooks place this material at a later point, but we believe it is vital to discuss
national differences first. After all, many of the central issues in international trade and in-
vestment, the global monetary system, international business strategy and structure, and
international business operations arise out of national differences in political economy and
culture. To fully understand these issues, students must first appreciate the differences in
countries and cultures. Ethical issues are dealt with at this juncture primarily because many
ethical dilemmas flow out of national differences in political systems, economic systems, and
culture.

PART THREE Chapters 6 through 9 investigate the political economy of international

trade and investment. The purpose of this part is to describe and explain the trade and in-
vestment environment in which international business occurs.

PART FOUR Chapters 10 and 11 describe and explain the global monetary system,
laying out in detail the monetary framework in which international business transactions
are conducted.

PART FIVE In Chapters 12 and 13, attention shifts from the environment to the firm.
Here the book examines the strategies that firms adopt to compete effectively in the inter-
national business environment.

PART SIX Chapters 14 through 17 explain how firms can perform key functions—
production, marketing, research and development, and human resource management to
compete and succeed in the international business environment. Throughout the book,
the relationship of new material to topics discussed in earlier chapters is pointed out to
the students to reinforce their understanding of how the material comprises an inte-
grated whole.

Accessible and Interesting

The international business arena is fascinating and exciting, and we have tried to com-
municate our enthusiasm for it to the student. Learning is easier and better if the sub-
ject matter is communicated in an interesting, informative, and accessible manner. One
technique we have used to achieve this is weaving interesting anecdotes into the narra-
tive of the text, that is, stories that illustrate theory. Prepared by co-author Tomas Hult,
of Michigan State University, the use of conversation starters also serve to present
controversial questions and allow students to discuss and apply concepts from the
chapter.
In addition to the conversation starters, most chapters also have a Country Focus box
that provides background on the political, economic, social, or cultural aspects of countries
grappling with an international business issue.

xx The Proven Choice for International Business

 How Important Are Intellectual/207/MH02219/hiL12915_disk1of1/0078112915/hiL12915_pagefiles
hiL12915_ch02_036-059.indd Page 42 12/09/14 9:56 AM f-w-143
Property Rights?
Burundi is a landlocked country in the Great Lake region of
Eastern Africa. Neighboring countries include Rwanda, Tanzania,
and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Burundi is hilly and
mountainous, with access to Lac Tanganyika. The government
system is a republic, with the chief of state and head of govern-
ment being the president. Burundi has a traditional economic
system in which the allocation of available resources is made
on the basis of primitive methods, and many citizens engage in
subsistence agriculture. At the same time, Burundi was last of
the 131 countries ranked in the 2013 International Property
Rights Index (IPRI). The IPRI is conducted by a partnership of 74
international organizations. The IPRI takes into account legal
and political environment, physical property rights, and intel-
lectual property rights. How much should companies focus on
Intellectual Property Rights in making their decision on where to
(1) produce their products and (2) sell their products? Does it
differ if you produce or sell in the country?
Source: www.internationalpropertyrightsindex.org.

country FOCUS
Venezuela under Hugo Chávez, 1999–2013
On March 5, 2013, Hugo Chávez, the president of Venezuela, died after
losing a battle against cancer. Chávez had been president of Venezuela
since 1999. A former military officer who was once jailed for engineer-
ing a failed coup attempt, Chávez was a self-styled democratic social-
ist who won the presidential election by campaigning against
corruption, economic mismanagement, and the “harsh realities” of
global capitalism. When he took office in February 1999, Chávez
In mid-2000, the world oil market bailed Chávez out of mounting
economic difficulties. Oil prices started to surge from the low $20s in
2003, reaching $150 a barrel by mid-2008. Venezuela, the world’s
fifth-largest producer, reaped a bonanza. On the back of surging oil
exports, the economy grew at a robust rate. Chávez used the oil reve-
nues to boost government spending on social programs, many of them
modeled after programs in Cuba. In 2006, he announced plans to re-
duce the stakes held by foreign companies in oil projects in the Orinoco
regions and to give the state-run oil company a majority position.

Results-Driven Technology
Across the country, instructors and students continue to raise an important question: How
can international business courses further support students throughout the learning process
to shape future global business leaders? While there is no one solution, Global Business Today,
ninth edition, offers a seamless content and technology solution to improve student engage-
ment and comprehension, automation of assignments and grading, and easy reporting to
ensure that learning objectives are being met. Connect® International Business provides a wide
array of tools and content to improve instructor productivity and student performance. In

The Proven Choice for International Business xxi

 fact, the aggregated results of 34 Connect adoptions showed an 11 percent improvement in
pass rates, a 16 percent improvement in retention, twice as many students receiving an A,
and 77 percent reduction in instructor grading time.

McGraw-Hill Connect International Business

Connect is an all-digital teaching and learning environment designed from the ground up to
work with the way instructors and students think, teach, and learn. As a digital teaching, as-
signment, and assessment platform, Connect strengthens the link among faculty, students,
and coursework, helping everyone accomplish more in less time.

LearnSmart
The smartest way to get from B to A
McGraw-Hill LearnSmart is the first and most widely used intelligent adaptive learning
resource. It is proven to strengthen memory recall, improve course retention, and boost
grades by distinguishing between what students know and what they don’t know, and hon-
ing in on the concepts that they are most likely to forget. LearnSmart continuously adapts
to each student’s needs by building an individual learning path. As a result, students study
smarter and retain more knowledge over time. LearnSmart is available within Connect as
well as stand-alone for greater student access.

SmartBook
A revolution in learning
Fueled by LearnSmart, SmartBook is the first and only adaptive reading experience avail-
able today. SmartBook personalizes content for each student in a continuously adapting
reading experience. Reading is no longer a passive and linear experience, but an engaging
and dynamic one where students are more likely to master and retain important concepts,
coming to class better prepared.

Interactive Assignments
A higher level of learning
Throughout the chapter, students will be prompted to complete a variety of interactive as-
signments that will require them to apply what they have learned in a real-world scenario.
These online exercises will help students assess their understanding of the concepts.
• Apply concepts from the book to a video case.

xxii The Proven Choice for International Business

• Make business decisions based on specific scenarios/cases from real-world companies.

• Analyze a case and apply chapter concepts.

• Demonstrate problem-solving skills through complex examples and diagrams.

• Demonstrate knowledge about business models and processes.

McGraw-Hill Connect Plus with Integrated Media-Rich E-book

McGraw-Hill reinvents the textbook-learning experience for today’s students with Connect
Plus, providing students with a cost-saving alternative to the traditional textbook. A seamless
integration of a media-rich e-book and Connect, Connect Plus provides all the Connect features
plus the following:
• A web-optimized e-book, allowing for anytime, anywhere online access to the textbook.
• Powerful search function to pinpoint and connect key concepts in a snap.
• Highlighting and note-taking capabilities as well as access to shared instructors’ notations.

Teaching Support
International Business offers you a complete package to prepare you for your course.

McGraw-Hill Connect
McGraw-Hill Education’s Connect strengthens the link between
faculty, students, and coursework, helping everyone accomplish
more in less time.

The Proven Choice for International Business xxiii

 Efficient Administrative Capabilities
Connect offers you, the instructor, auto-gradable material in an effort to facilitate teaching
and learning.

Student Progress Tracking

Connect and LearnSmart allow Connect keeps instructors informed about how each student,
me to present course material section, and class is performing, allowing more productive use
to students in more ways than of lecture and office hours. The progress tracking function
just the explanations they hear enables instructors to:
from me directly. Because
of this, students are processing the • View scored work immediately and track individual or
material in new ways, requiring group performance with assignment and grade reports.
them to think. I now have more • Access an instant view of student or class performance
students asking questions in class relative to learning objectives.
because the more we think, the • Collect data and generate reports required by many
more we question. accreditation organizations, such as AACSB.
Sharon Feaster, Instructor at
Hinds Community College
Instructor Library
Connect’s instructor library serves as a one-stop, secure site
for essential course materials, allowing you to save prep time
before class. The instructor resources found in the library
include:
• Instructor’s Manual. The Instructor’s Manual is a comprehensive resource designed to
support you in effectively teaching your course. It includes course outlines; chapter
teaching resources, including chapter overviews and outlines, teaching suggestions,
chapter objectives, teaching suggestions for opening cases, lecture outlines, answers to
critical discussion questions, teaching suggestions for the closing case, and two student
activities (some with Internet components); and expanded video notes with discussion
questions for each video. The answers to globalEDGE research tasks are included.
• Test Bank. Approximately 100 true-false, multiple-choice, and essay questions per
chapter are included in the test bank. We’ve aligned our test bank questions with
Bloom’s Taxonomy and AACSB guidelines, tagging each question according to its
knowledge and skill areas. Each test bank question also maps to a specific chapter
learning objective listed in the text. You can use our test bank software, EZ Test, to
easily query for learning objectives that directly relate to the learning objectives for
your course. You can use the reporting features of EZ Test to aggregate student results
in a similar fashion, making the collection and presentation of assurance-of-learning
data quick and easy.
• PowerPoint Presentations. The PowerPoint program consists of one set of slides for
every chapter, featuring original materials not found in the text in addition to
reproductions and illuminations of key text figures, tables, and maps. Quiz questions to
keep students on their toes during classroom presentations are also included, along with
instructor notes.

xxiv The Proven Choice for International Business

• McGraw-Hill offers the most current, diverse, and comprehensive video support for the
international business classroom. Adopters can request our International Business
Instructor Video DVD (ISBN 1259392015) from their McGraw-Hill sales representative.
The DVD features 20 clips, selected based on their relevance to the text’s chapter
material. Corresponding video notes are available. In addition to the DVD, we provide
clips from a variety of online sources, updated monthly.

McGraw-Hill Customer Experience Group Contact Information

At McGraw-Hill, we understand that getting the most from new technology can be chal-
lenging. That’s why our services don’t stop after you purchase our products. You can
e-mail our product specialists 24 hours a day to get product training online. Or you can
search our knowledge bank of frequently asked questions on our support website. For
customer support, call 800-331-5094, e-mail hmsupport@mcgraw-hill.com, or visit
www.mhhe.com/support. One of our technical support analysts will be able to assist you
in a timely fashion.

Course Design and Delivery

cesim GlobalChallenge Simulation
cesim is an international business simulation designed to develop student understanding of
the interaction and complexity of various business disciplines and concepts in a rapidly
evolving, competitive business environment. The simulation has a particular focus on creat-
ing long-term, sustainable, and profitable growth of a global technology company. Student
teams make decisions about technology-based product roadmaps and global market and
production strategies involving economics, finance, human resources, accounting, procure-
ment, production, logistics, research and innovation, and marketing. cesim improves the
knowledge retention, business decision-making, and teamwork skills of students.

Create
Instructors can now tailor their teaching resources to match the way they teach! With
McGraw-Hill Create, www.mcgrawhillcreate.com/hill, instructors can easily rearrange
alternate, combined chapters (see brief table to contents on page v). Combine material
from other content sources, and quickly upload and integrate their own content, like
course syllabi or teaching notes. Find the right content in Create by searching through
thousands of leading McGraw-Hill textbooks. Arrange the material to fit your teaching
style. Order a Create book, and receive a complimentary print review copy in 3–5 business
days or a complimentary electronic review copy (echo) via e-mail within one hour. Go to
www.mcgrawhillcreate.com/hill today and register.

Tegrity Campus
Tegrity makes class time available 24/7 by automatically capturing every lecture in a search-
able format for students to review when they study and complete assignments. With a sim- ®

ple one-click start-and-stop process, you capture all computer screens and corresponding
audio. Students can replay any part of any class with easy-to-use browser-based viewing on
a PC or Mac. Educators know that the more students can see, hear, and experience class
resources, the better they learn. In fact, studies prove it. With patented Tegrity “search any-
thing” technology, students instantly recall key class moments for replay online, or on iPods
and mobile devices. Instructors can help turn all their students’ study time into learning
moments immediately supported by their lecture. To learn more about Tegrity, watch a two-
minute Flash demo at http://tegritycampus.mhhe.com.

Blackboard® Partnership
McGraw-Hill Education and Blackboard have teamed up to simplify your life. Now you and
your students can access Connect and Create right from within your Blackboard course—all
with one single sign-on. The grade books are seamless, so when a student completes an

The Proven Choice for International Business xxv

 integrated Connect assignment, the grade for that assignment automatically (and instantly)
feeds your Blackboard grade center. Learn more at www.domorenow.com.

McGraw-Hill Campus™
McGraw-Hill Campus is a new one-stop teaching and learning experience available to users
of any learning management system.
This institutional service allows faculty and students to enjoy single sign-on (SSO) access
to all McGraw-Hill Education materials, including the award-winning McGraw-Hill Con-
nect platform, from directly within the institution’s website. With McGraw-Hill Campus,
faculty receive instant access to teaching materials (e.g., e-textbooks, test banks, PowerPoint
slides, learning objects, etc.), allowing them to browse, search, and use any instructor ancil-
lary content in our vast library at no additional cost to instructors or students. In addition,
students enjoy SSO access to a variety of free content and subscription-based products (e.g.,
McGraw-Hill Connect). With McGraw-Hill Campus enabled, faculty and students will never
need to create another account to access McGraw-Hill products and services. Learn more at
www.mhcampus.com.

Assurance of Learning Ready

Many educational institutions today focus on the notion of assurance of learning, an
important element of some accreditation standards. International Business is designed spe-
cifically to support instructors’ assurance of learning initiatives with a simple yet power-
ful solution. Each test bank question for International Business maps to a specific chapter
learning objective listed in the text. Instructors can use our test bank software, EZ Test
and EZ Test Online, to easily query for learning objectives that directly relate to the
learning outcomes for their course. Instructors can then use the reporting features of EZ
Test to aggregate student results in similar fashion, making the collection and presenta-
tion of assurance of learning data simple and easy.

AACSB Tagging
McGraw-Hill Education is a proud corporate member of AACSB International. Under-
standing the importance and value of AACSB accreditation, International Business recog-
nizes the curricula guidelines detailed in the AACSB standards for business accreditation
by connecting selected questions in the text and the test bank to the six general knowl-
edge and skill guidelines in the AACSB standards. The statements contained in Interna-
tional Business are provided only as a guide for the users of this textbook. The AACSB
leaves content coverage and assessment within the purview of individual schools, the
mission of the school, and the faculty. While the International Business teaching package
makes no claim of any specific AACSB qualification or evaluation, we have within Inter-
national Business labeled selected questions according to the six general knowledge and
skills areas.

xxvi The Proven Choice for International Business

Acknowledgments
Numerous people deserve to be thanked for their assistance in preparing this edition.
First, we want to thank all the people at McGraw-Hill Education who have worked with us
on this project:

Anke Weekes, Senior Brand Manager

Andrea Scheive, Development Editor
Michael Gedatus, Marketing Manager
Elizabeth Steiner, Marketing Specialist
Danielle Clement, Content Project Manager
Matt Diamond, Designer
Keri Johnson, Lead Content Licensing Specialist

Second, our thanks go to the reviewers, who provided good feedback that helped shape this
edition:

Jacobus F. Boers, Georgia State University

Peter Buckley, Leeds University
Macgorine A. Cassell, Fairmont State University
David Closs, Michigan State University
Ping Deng, Maryville University of St. Louis
Betty J. Diener, Barry University
Pat Fox, Marion Technical College
Connie Golden, Lakeland Community College
Martin Grossman, Bridgewater State University
Michael Harris, East Carolina University
Kathy Hastings, Greenville Technical College
Chip Izard, Richland College
Jan Johanson, Uppsala University
Candida Johnson, Holyoke Community College
Sara B. Kimmel, Mississippi College
Tunga Kiyak, Michigan State University
Laura Kozloski Hart, Barry University
Ruby Lee, Florida State University
Vishakha Maskey, West Liberty University
Shelly McCallum, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Emily A. Morad, Reading Area Community College
Tim Muth, Florida Institute of Technology
Dwight Shook, Catawba Valley Community College
James Whelan, Manhattan College
Man Zhang, Bowling Green State University

A special thanks to David Closs, and David Frayer for allowing us to borrow
elements of the sections on Strategic Roles for Production Facilities; Make-or-Buy
Decisions; Global Supply Chain Functions; Coordination in Global Supply Chains;
and Interorganizational Relationships for chapter 15 of this text from Tomas Hult,
David Closs, and David Frayer (2014), Global Supply Chain Management, New York:
McGraw Hill.

The Proven Choice for International Business xxvii

Global
Business
Today
 Introduction and Overview
part 1

learning objectives

1-1 Understand what is meant by the term globalization.

1-2 Recognize the main drivers of globalization.

1-3 Describe the changing nature of the global economy.

1-4 Explain the main arguments in the debate over the impact of globalization.

1-5 Understand how the process of globalization is creating opportunities and

challenges for business managers.
 r
te

p
cha
1

Globalization
The Globalization of Production at Boeing

opening case
xecutives at the Boeing Corporation, America’s largest exporter, like to say that building a large

E commercial jet aircraft like the 747 or 787 involves bringing together more than a million parts in
flying formation. Forty-five years ago, when the early models of Boeing’s venerable 737 and 747 jets
were rolling off the company’s Seattle area production lines, foreign suppliers accounted for only 5 percent
of those parts on average. Boeing was vertically integrated and manufactured many of the major compo-
nents that went into the planes. The largest parts produced by outside suppliers were the jet engines,
where two of the three suppliers were American companies. The lone foreign engine manufacturer was the
British company Rolls Royce.
Fast-forward to the modern era, and things look very different. In the case of its latest aircraft, the super
efficient 787 Dreamliner, 50 outside suppliers spread around the world account for 65 percent of the value
of the aircraft. Italian firm Alenia Aeronautica makes the center fuselage and horizontal stabilizer. Kawasaki
of Japan makes part of the forward fuselage and the fixed trailing edge of the wing. French firm Messier-
Dowty makes the aircraft’s landing gear. German firm Diehl Luftahrt Elektronik supplies the main cabin
lighting. Sweden’s Saab Aerostructures makes the access doors. Japanese company Jamco makes parts for
the lavatories, flight decks interiors, and galleys. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan makes the wings.
KAA of Korea makes the wing tips. And so on.
Why the change? One reason is that 80 percent of Boeing’s customers are foreign airlines, and to sell
into those nations, it often helps to be giving business to those nations. The trend started in 1974 when
Mitsubishi of Japan was given contracts to produce inboard wing flaps for the 747. The Japanese
reciprocated by placing big orders for Boeing jets. A second rationale was to disperse component part
production to those suppliers who are the best in the world at their particular activity. Over the years, for
example, Mitsubishi has acquired considerable expertise in the manufacture of wings, so it was logical for
Boeing to use Mitsubishi to make the wings for the 787. Similarly, the 787 is the first commercial jet
aircraft to be made almost entirely out of carbon fiber, so Boeing tapped Japan’s Toray industries, a
–continued
 world-class expert in sturdy but light carbon-fiber composites, to supply materials for
the fuselage. A third reason for the extensive outsourcing on the 787 was that Boeing
wanted to unburden itself of some of the risks and costs associated with developing
production facilities for the 787. By outsourcing, it pushed some of those risks and costs
off onto suppliers, who had to undertake major investments in capacity to ramp up to
produce for the 787.
So what did Boeing retain for itself? Engineering design, marketing and sales, and
final assembly at its Everett plant north of Seattle, all activities where Boeing maintains
it is the best in the world. Of major component parts, Boeing only made the tail fin and
wing to body fairing (which attaches the wings to the fuselage of the plane). Everything
else was outsourced.
As the 787 moved through development in the 2000s, however, it became clear that
Boeing had pushed the outsourcing paradigm too far. Coordinating a globally dispersed
production system this extensive turned out to be very challenging. Parts turned up late,
some parts didn’t “snap together” the way Boeing had envisioned, and several suppliers
ran into engineering problems that slowed down the entire production process. As a
consequence, the date for delivery of the first jet was pushed back more than four years,
and Boeing had to take millions of dollars in penalties for late deliveries. The problems
at one supplier, Vought Aircraft in North Carolina, were so severe that Boeing ultimately
agreed to acquire the company and bring its production in-house. Vought was co-owned
by Alenia of Italy and made parts of the main fuselage.
There are now signs that Boeing is rethinking some of its global outsourcing policy.
For its next jet, a new version of its popular, wide-bodied 777 jet, the 777X, which will
use the same carbon-fiber technology as the 787, Boeing will bring wing production
back in-house. Mitsubishi and Kawasaki of Japan produce much of the wing structure for
the 787, and for the original version of the 777. However, recently Japan’s airlines have
been placing large orders with Airbus, breaking with their traditional allegiance to
Boeing. This seems to have given Boeing an opening to bring wing production back in-
house. Boeing executive also note that Boeing has lost much of its expertise in wing
production over the last 20 years due to outsourcing, and bringing it back in-house for
new carbon-fiber wings might enable Boeing to regain these important core skills and
strengthen the company’s competitive position. •
Sources: K. Epstein and J. Crown, “Globalization Bites Boeing,” Bloomberg Businessweek, March 12, 2008; H. Mallick, “Out of
Control Outsourcing Ruined Boeing’s Beautiful Dreamliner,” The Star, February 25, 2013; P. Kavilanz, “Dreamliner: Where in the
World Its Parts Come From,” CNN Money, January 18, 2013; S. Dubois, “Boeing’s Dreamliner Mess: Simply Inevitable?” CNN
Money, January 22, 2013; and A. Scott and T. Kelly, “Boeing’s Loss of a $9.5 Billion Deal Could Bring Jobs Back to the U.S.,”
.,”
Business Insider, October 14, 2013.

Introduction
Over the past four decades a fundamental shift has been occurring in the world economy.
We have been moving away from a world in which national economies were relatively self-
contained entities, isolated from each other by barriers to cross-border trade and invest-
ment; by distance, time zones, and language; and by national differences in government
regulation, culture, and business systems. We are moving toward a world in which barriers
to cross-border trade and investment are declining; perceived distance is shrinking due to
advances in transportation and telecommunications technology; material culture is starting
to look similar the world over; and national economies are merging into an interdependent,

4 Part One Introduction and Overview

integrated global economic system. The process by which this transformation is occurring is
commonly referred to as globalization.
The global dispersal of production for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, outlined in the open-
ing case, is one example of the trend toward globalization. In 1970, independent suppliers
produced only 5 percent of the value of a Boeing commercial jet. With the advent of the
787 Dreamliner, this figure reached 65 percent, and many of those suppliers were scat-
tered around the globe. Part of Boeing’s rationale was that 80 percent of its sales went to
foreign airlines, and winning orders in this global marketplace required that it outsource
some production to other nations. Boeing also believed that it made sense to outsource
production of component parts to independent suppliers if they were the best in the world
at performing that particular activity, no matter where they were located. In Boeing’s view,
the result of such a strategy would be greater efficiency and lower costs, which would help
Boeing compete on price against its global rival in the commercial aircraft business,
Airbus. As the case makes clear, however, there are risks involved in embracing globaliza-
tion to the extent that Boeing did. Coordinating a globally dispersed supply chain turned
out to be a logistical nightmare, and was partly responsible for delaying the launch of the
787 by more than four years, which cost Boeing dearly. The Boeing example illustrates,
therefore, that managers need to carefully think through their strategy for competing in
the global market place of the twenty-first century, balancing the benefits of embracing
globalizations against the associated risks. This is a theme that we shall return to repeat-
edly throughout this text.
More generally, globalization now has an impact upon almost everything we do. The
average American, for example, might drive to work in a car that was designed in Germany
and assembled in Mexico by Ford from components made in the United States and Japan,
which were fabricated from Korean steel and Malaysian rubber. He may have filled the car
with gasoline at a Shell service station owned by a British-Dutch multinational company.
The gasoline could have been made from oil pumped out of a well off the coast of Africa by
a French oil company that transported it to the United States in a ship owned by a Greek
shipping line. While driving to work, the American might talk to his stockbroker (using a
hands-free, in-car speaker) on an Apple iPhone that was designed in California and assem-
bled in China using chip sets produced in Japan and Europe, glass made by Corning in
Kentucky, and memory chips from South Korea. He could tell the stockbroker to purchase
shares in Lenovo, a multinational Chinese PC manufacturer whose operational headquar-
ters is in North Carolina.
This is the world in which we live. It is a world where the volume of goods, services, and
investments crossing national borders has expanded faster than world output for more than
half a century. It is a world where more than $5 trillion in
foreign exchange transactions are made every day, where
$18.3 trillion of goods and $4.3 trillion of services were sold
across national borders in 2012.1 It is a world in which inter-
What Will Happen to the
national institutions such as the World Trade Organization United States?
and gatherings of leaders from the world’s most powerful The United States has the largest and most technologically pow-
economies have repeatedly called for even lower barriers to erful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP (gross domes-
cross-border trade and investment. It is a world where the tic product) of $49,100. The 2013 GDP was valued at $16.72
symbols of material and popular culture are increasingly trillion. Most of the labor force (79.4 percent) is employed in the
global: from Coca-Cola and Starbucks to Sony PlayStations, services sector, with 19.5 percent employed in manufacturing
industries, and only 1.1 percent in the agricultural area. China,
Facebook, MTV shows, Disney films, IKEA stores, and
India, and the European Union have a labor force larger than the
Apple iPads and iPhones. It is also a world in which vigorous
United States, which ranks fourth in the world. Data show that
and vocal groups protest against globalization, which they the U.S. has become much more of a service economy over the
blame for a list of ills from unemployment in developed na- years. Will the U.S. continue to increase its service sector at the
tions to environmental degradation and the Americanization cost of manufacturing and agriculture?
of local culture.
Source: U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, World Factbook, www.cia.gov, accessed
For businesses, this globalization process has produced March 3, 2014.
many opportunities. Firms can expand their revenues by
selling around the world and/or reduce their costs by pro-
ducing in nations where key inputs, including labor, are

Chapter One Globalization 5


LO 1-1
Understand what is meant by the
term globalization.
Globalization
Trend away from distinct national economic
units and toward one huge global market.
Globalization of Markets
Moving away from an economic system
in which national markets are distinct
entities, isolated by trade barriers and
barriers of distance, time, and culture,
and toward a system in which national
markets are merging into one global
market.
6 Part One Introduction and Overview
cheap. The global expansion of enterprises has been facilitated by favorable political and
economic trends. Since the collapse of communism at the end of the 1980s, the pendulum
of public policy in nation after nation has swung toward the free market end of the eco-
nomic spectrum. Regulatory and administrative barriers to doing business in foreign nations
have been reduced, while those nations have often transformed their economies, privatizing
state-owned enterprises, deregulating markets, increasing competition, and welcoming in-
vestment by foreign businesses. This has allowed businesses both large and small, from both
advanced nations and developing nations, to expand internationally.
As globalization unfolds, it is transforming industries and creating anxiety among those
who believed their jobs were protected from foreign competition. Historically, while many
workers in manufacturing industries worried about the impact foreign competition might
have on their jobs, workers in service industries felt more secure. Now, this too is changing.
Advances in technology, lower transportation costs, and the rise of skilled workers in devel-
oping countries imply that many services no longer need to be performed where they are
delivered. The same is true of some accounting services. Today, many individual U.S. tax
returns are compiled in India. Indian accountants, trained in U.S. tax rules, perform work
for U.S. accounting firms.2 They access individual tax returns stored on computers in the
United States, perform routine calculations, and save their work so that it can be inspected
by a U.S. accountant, who then bills clients. As the best-selling author Thomas Friedman
has argued, the world is becoming flat.3 People living in developed nations no longer have
the playing field tilted in their favor. Increasingly, enterprising individuals based in India,
China, or Brazil have the same opportunities to better themselves as those living in western
Europe, the United States, or Canada.
In this text, we will take a close look at the issues introduced here and many more. We
will explore how changes in regulations governing international trade and investment, when
coupled with changes in political systems and technology, have dramatically altered the
competitive playing field confronting many businesses. We will discuss the resulting oppor-
tunities and threats and review the strategies that managers can pursue to exploit the op-
portunities and counter the threats. We will consider whether globalization benefits or
harms national economies. We will look at what economic theory has to say about the out-
sourcing of manufacturing and service jobs to places such as India and China and look at the
benefits and costs of outsourcing, not just to business firms and their employees but also to
entire economies. First, though, we need to get a better overview of the nature and process
of globalization, and that is the function of this first chapter.
What Is Globalization?
As used in this text, globalization refers to the shift toward a more integrated and interde-
pendent world economy. Globalization has several facets, including the globalization of
markets and the globalization of production.
THE GLOBALIZATION OF MARKETS The globalization of markets re-
fers to the merging of historically distinct and separate national markets into one huge
global marketplace. Falling barriers to cross-border trade have made it easier to sell interna-
tionally. It has been argued for some time that the tastes and preferences of consumers in
different nations are beginning to converge on some global norm, thereby helping to create
a global market.4 Consumer products such as Citigroup credit cards, Coca-Cola soft drinks,
video games, McDonald’s hamburgers, Starbucks coffee, IKEA furniture, and Apple iPhones
are frequently held up as prototypical examples of this trend. The firms that produce these
products are more than just benefactors of this trend; they are also facilitators of it. By offer-
ing the same basic product worldwide, they help create a global market.
A company does not have to be the size of these multinational giants to facilitate, and
benefit from, the globalization of markets. In the United States, for example, according to
the International Trade Administration, more than 302,000 small and medium-size firms
with less than 500 employees exported in 2011, accounting for 98 percent of the companies
that exported that year. More generally, exports from small and medium-size companies
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
 DANCE ON STILTS AT THE GIRLS’ UNYAGO, NIUCHI

Newala, too, suffers from the distance of its water-supply—at least

the Newala of to-day does; there was once another Newala in a lovely
valley at the foot of the plateau. I visited it and found scarcely a trace
of houses, only a Christian cemetery, with the graves of several
missionaries and their converts, remaining as a monument of its
former glories. But the surroundings are wonderfully beautiful. A
thick grove of splendid mango-trees closes in the weather-worn
crosses and headstones; behind them, combining the useful and the
agreeable, is a whole plantation of lemon-trees covered with ripe
fruit; not the small African kind, but a much larger and also juicier
imported variety, which drops into the hands of the passing traveller,
without calling for any exertion on his part. Old Newala is now under
the jurisdiction of the native pastor, Daudi, at Chingulungulu, who,
as I am on very friendly terms with him, allows me, as a matter of
course, the use of this lemon-grove during my stay at Newala.
 FEET MUTILATED BY THE RAVAGES OF THE “JIGGER”
(Sarcopsylla penetrans)

The water-supply of New Newala is in the bottom of the valley,

some 1,600 feet lower down. The way is not only long and fatiguing,
but the water, when we get it, is thoroughly bad. We are suffering not
only from this, but from the fact that the arrangements at Newala are
nothing short of luxurious. We have a separate kitchen—a hut built
against the boma palisade on the right of the baraza, the interior of
which is not visible from our usual position. Our two cooks were not
long in finding this out, and they consequently do—or rather neglect
to do—what they please. In any case they do not seem to be very
particular about the boiling of our drinking-water—at least I can
attribute to no other cause certain attacks of a dysenteric nature,
from which both Knudsen and I have suffered for some time. If a
man like Omari has to be left unwatched for a moment, he is capable
of anything. Besides this complaint, we are inconvenienced by the
state of our nails, which have become as hard as glass, and crack on
the slightest provocation, and I have the additional infliction of
pimples all over me. As if all this were not enough, we have also, for
the last week been waging war against the jigger, who has found his
Eldorado in the hot sand of the Makonde plateau. Our men are seen
all day long—whenever their chronic colds and the dysentery likewise
raging among them permit—occupied in removing this scourge of
Africa from their feet and trying to prevent the disastrous
consequences of its presence. It is quite common to see natives of
this place with one or two toes missing; many have lost all their toes,
or even the whole front part of the foot, so that a well-formed leg
ends in a shapeless stump. These ravages are caused by the female of
Sarcopsylla penetrans, which bores its way under the skin and there
develops an egg-sac the size of a pea. In all books on the subject, it is
stated that one’s attention is called to the presence of this parasite by
an intolerable itching. This agrees very well with my experience, so
far as the softer parts of the sole, the spaces between and under the
toes, and the side of the foot are concerned, but if the creature
penetrates through the harder parts of the heel or ball of the foot, it
may escape even the most careful search till it has reached maturity.
Then there is no time to be lost, if the horrible ulceration, of which
we see cases by the dozen every day, is to be prevented. It is much
easier, by the way, to discover the insect on the white skin of a
European than on that of a native, on which the dark speck scarcely
shows. The four or five jiggers which, in spite of the fact that I
constantly wore high laced boots, chose my feet to settle in, were
taken out for me by the all-accomplished Knudsen, after which I
thought it advisable to wash out the cavities with corrosive
sublimate. The natives have a different sort of disinfectant—they fill
the hole with scraped roots. In a tiny Makua village on the slope of
the plateau south of Newala, we saw an old woman who had filled all
the spaces under her toe-nails with powdered roots by way of
prophylactic treatment. What will be the result, if any, who can say?
The rest of the many trifling ills which trouble our existence are
really more comic than serious. In the absence of anything else to
smoke, Knudsen and I at last opened a box of cigars procured from
the Indian store-keeper at Lindi, and tried them, with the most
distressing results. Whether they contain opium or some other
narcotic, neither of us can say, but after the tenth puff we were both
“off,” three-quarters stupefied and unspeakably wretched. Slowly we
recovered—and what happened next? Half-an-hour later we were
once more smoking these poisonous concoctions—so insatiable is the
craving for tobacco in the tropics.
Even my present attacks of fever scarcely deserve to be taken
seriously. I have had no less than three here at Newala, all of which
have run their course in an incredibly short time. In the early
afternoon, I am busy with my old natives, asking questions and
making notes. The strong midday coffee has stimulated my spirits to
an extraordinary degree, the brain is active and vigorous, and work
progresses rapidly, while a pleasant warmth pervades the whole
body. Suddenly this gives place to a violent chill, forcing me to put on
my overcoat, though it is only half-past three and the afternoon sun
is at its hottest. Now the brain no longer works with such acuteness
and logical precision; more especially does it fail me in trying to
establish the syntax of the difficult Makua language on which I have
ventured, as if I had not enough to do without it. Under the
circumstances it seems advisable to take my temperature, and I do
so, to save trouble, without leaving my seat, and while going on with
my work. On examination, I find it to be 101·48°. My tutors are
abruptly dismissed and my bed set up in the baraza; a few minutes
later I am in it and treating myself internally with hot water and
lemon-juice.
Three hours later, the thermometer marks nearly 104°, and I make
them carry me back into the tent, bed and all, as I am now perspiring
heavily, and exposure to the cold wind just beginning to blow might
mean a fatal chill. I lie still for a little while, and then find, to my
great relief, that the temperature is not rising, but rather falling. This
is about 7.30 p.m. At 8 p.m. I find, to my unbounded astonishment,
that it has fallen below 98·6°, and I feel perfectly well. I read for an
hour or two, and could very well enjoy a smoke, if I had the
wherewithal—Indian cigars being out of the question.
Having no medical training, I am at a loss to account for this state
of things. It is impossible that these transitory attacks of high fever
should be malarial; it seems more probable that they are due to a
kind of sunstroke. On consulting my note-book, I become more and
more inclined to think this is the case, for these attacks regularly
follow extreme fatigue and long exposure to strong sunshine. They at
least have the advantage of being only short interruptions to my
work, as on the following morning I am always quite fresh and fit.
My treasure of a cook is suffering from an enormous hydrocele which
makes it difficult for him to get up, and Moritz is obliged to keep in
the dark on account of his inflamed eyes. Knudsen’s cook, a raw boy
from somewhere in the bush, knows still less of cooking than Omari;
consequently Nils Knudsen himself has been promoted to the vacant
post. Finding that we had come to the end of our supplies, he began
by sending to Chingulungulu for the four sucking-pigs which we had
bought from Matola and temporarily left in his charge; and when
they came up, neatly packed in a large crate, he callously slaughtered
the biggest of them. The first joint we were thoughtless enough to
entrust for roasting to Knudsen’s mshenzi cook, and it was
consequently uneatable; but we made the rest of the animal into a
jelly which we ate with great relish after weeks of underfeeding,
consuming incredible helpings of it at both midday and evening
meals. The only drawback is a certain want of variety in the tinned
vegetables. Dr. Jäger, to whom the Geographical Commission
entrusted the provisioning of the expeditions—mine as well as his
own—because he had more time on his hands than the rest of us,
seems to have laid in a huge stock of Teltow turnips,[46] an article of
food which is all very well for occasional use, but which quickly palls
when set before one every day; and we seem to have no other tins
left. There is no help for it—we must put up with the turnips; but I
am certain that, once I am home again, I shall not touch them for ten
years to come.
Amid all these minor evils, which, after all, go to make up the
genuine flavour of Africa, there is at least one cheering touch:
Knudsen has, with the dexterity of a skilled mechanic, repaired my 9
× 12 cm. camera, at least so far that I can use it with a little care.
How, in the absence of finger-nails, he was able to accomplish such a
ticklish piece of work, having no tool but a clumsy screw-driver for
taking to pieces and putting together again the complicated
mechanism of the instantaneous shutter, is still a mystery to me; but
he did it successfully. The loss of his finger-nails shows him in a light
contrasting curiously enough with the intelligence evinced by the
above operation; though, after all, it is scarcely surprising after his
ten years’ residence in the bush. One day, at Lindi, he had occasion
to wash a dog, which must have been in need of very thorough
cleansing, for the bottle handed to our friend for the purpose had an
extremely strong smell. Having performed his task in the most
conscientious manner, he perceived with some surprise that the dog
did not appear much the better for it, and was further surprised by
finding his own nails ulcerating away in the course of the next few
days. “How was I to know that carbolic acid has to be diluted?” he
mutters indignantly, from time to time, with a troubled gaze at his
mutilated finger-tips.
 Since we came to Newala we have been making excursions in all
directions through the surrounding country, in accordance with old
habit, and also because the akida Sefu did not get together the tribal
elders from whom I wanted information so speedily as he had
promised. There is, however, no harm done, as, even if seen only
from the outside, the country and people are interesting enough.
The Makonde plateau is like a large rectangular table rounded off
at the corners. Measured from the Indian Ocean to Newala, it is
about seventy-five miles long, and between the Rovuma and the
Lukuledi it averages fifty miles in breadth, so that its superficial area
is about two-thirds of that of the kingdom of Saxony. The surface,
however, is not level, but uniformly inclined from its south-western
edge to the ocean. From the upper edge, on which Newala lies, the
eye ranges for many miles east and north-east, without encountering
any obstacle, over the Makonde bush. It is a green sea, from which
here and there thick clouds of smoke rise, to show that it, too, is
inhabited by men who carry on their tillage like so many other
primitive peoples, by cutting down and burning the bush, and
manuring with the ashes. Even in the radiant light of a tropical day
such a fire is a grand sight.
Much less effective is the impression produced just now by the
great western plain as seen from the edge of the plateau. As often as
time permits, I stroll along this edge, sometimes in one direction,
sometimes in another, in the hope of finding the air clear enough to
let me enjoy the view; but I have always been disappointed.
Wherever one looks, clouds of smoke rise from the burning bush,
and the air is full of smoke and vapour. It is a pity, for under more
favourable circumstances the panorama of the whole country up to
the distant Majeje hills must be truly magnificent. It is of little use
taking photographs now, and an outline sketch gives a very poor idea
of the scenery. In one of these excursions I went out of my way to
make a personal attempt on the Makonde bush. The present edge of
the plateau is the result of a far-reaching process of destruction
through erosion and denudation. The Makonde strata are
everywhere cut into by ravines, which, though short, are hundreds of
yards in depth. In consequence of the loose stratification of these
beds, not only are the walls of these ravines nearly vertical, but their
upper end is closed by an equally steep escarpment, so that the
western edge of the Makonde plateau is hemmed in by a series of
deep, basin-like valleys. In order to get from one side of such a ravine
to the other, I cut my way through the bush with a dozen of my men.
It was a very open part, with more grass than scrub, but even so the
short stretch of less than two hundred yards was very hard work; at
the end of it the men’s calicoes were in rags and they themselves
bleeding from hundreds of scratches, while even our strong khaki
suits had not escaped scatheless.

NATIVE PATH THROUGH THE MAKONDE BUSH, NEAR

MAHUTA

I see increasing reason to believe that the view formed some time
back as to the origin of the Makonde bush is the correct one. I have
no doubt that it is not a natural product, but the result of human
occupation. Those parts of the high country where man—as a very
slight amount of practice enables the eye to perceive at once—has not
yet penetrated with axe and hoe, are still occupied by a splendid
timber forest quite able to sustain a comparison with our mixed
forests in Germany. But wherever man has once built his hut or tilled
his field, this horrible bush springs up. Every phase of this process
may be seen in the course of a couple of hours’ walk along the main
road. From the bush to right or left, one hears the sound of the axe—
not from one spot only, but from several directions at once. A few
steps further on, we can see what is taking place. The brush has been
cut down and piled up in heaps to the height of a yard or more,
between which the trunks of the large trees stand up like the last
pillars of a magnificent ruined building. These, too, present a
melancholy spectacle: the destructive Makonde have ringed them—
cut a broad strip of bark all round to ensure their dying off—and also
piled up pyramids of brush round them. Father and son, mother and
son-in-law, are chopping away perseveringly in the background—too
busy, almost, to look round at the white stranger, who usually excites
so much interest. If you pass by the same place a week later, the piles
of brushwood have disappeared and a thick layer of ashes has taken
the place of the green forest. The large trees stretch their
smouldering trunks and branches in dumb accusation to heaven—if
they have not already fallen and been more or less reduced to ashes,
perhaps only showing as a white stripe on the dark ground.
This work of destruction is carried out by the Makonde alike on the
virgin forest and on the bush which has sprung up on sites already
cultivated and deserted. In the second case they are saved the trouble
of burning the large trees, these being entirely absent in the
secondary bush.
After burning this piece of forest ground and loosening it with the
hoe, the native sows his corn and plants his vegetables. All over the
country, he goes in for bed-culture, which requires, and, in fact,
receives, the most careful attention. Weeds are nowhere tolerated in
the south of German East Africa. The crops may fail on the plains,
where droughts are frequent, but never on the plateau with its
abundant rains and heavy dews. Its fortunate inhabitants even have
the satisfaction of seeing the proud Wayao and Wamakua working
for them as labourers, driven by hunger to serve where they were
accustomed to rule.
But the light, sandy soil is soon exhausted, and would yield no
harvest the second year if cultivated twice running. This fact has
been familiar to the native for ages; consequently he provides in
time, and, while his crop is growing, prepares the next plot with axe
and firebrand. Next year he plants this with his various crops and
lets the first piece lie fallow. For a short time it remains waste and
desolate; then nature steps in to repair the destruction wrought by
man; a thousand new growths spring out of the exhausted soil, and
even the old stumps put forth fresh shoots. Next year the new growth
is up to one’s knees, and in a few years more it is that terrible,
impenetrable bush, which maintains its position till the black
occupier of the land has made the round of all the available sites and
come back to his starting point.
The Makonde are, body and soul, so to speak, one with this bush.
According to my Yao informants, indeed, their name means nothing
else but “bush people.” Their own tradition says that they have been
settled up here for a very long time, but to my surprise they laid great
stress on an original immigration. Their old homes were in the
south-east, near Mikindani and the mouth of the Rovuma, whence
their peaceful forefathers were driven by the continual raids of the
Sakalavas from Madagascar and the warlike Shirazis[47] of the coast,
to take refuge on the almost inaccessible plateau. I have studied
African ethnology for twenty years, but the fact that changes of
population in this apparently quiet and peaceable corner of the earth
could have been occasioned by outside enterprises taking place on
the high seas, was completely new to me. It is, no doubt, however,
correct.
The charming tribal legend of the Makonde—besides informing us
of other interesting matters—explains why they have to live in the
thickest of the bush and a long way from the edge of the plateau,
instead of making their permanent homes beside the purling brooks
and springs of the low country.
“The place where the tribe originated is Mahuta, on the southern
side of the plateau towards the Rovuma, where of old time there was
nothing but thick bush. Out of this bush came a man who never
washed himself or shaved his head, and who ate and drank but little.
He went out and made a human figure from the wood of a tree
growing in the open country, which he took home to his abode in the
bush and there set it upright. In the night this image came to life and
was a woman. The man and woman went down together to the
Rovuma to wash themselves. Here the woman gave birth to a still-
born child. They left that place and passed over the high land into the
valley of the Mbemkuru, where the woman had another child, which
was also born dead. Then they returned to the high bush country of
Mahuta, where the third child was born, which lived and grew up. In
course of time, the couple had many more children, and called
themselves Wamatanda. These were the ancestral stock of the
Makonde, also called Wamakonde,[48] i.e., aborigines. Their
forefather, the man from the bush, gave his children the command to
bury their dead upright, in memory of the mother of their race who
was cut out of wood and awoke to life when standing upright. He also
warned them against settling in the valleys and near large streams,
for sickness and death dwelt there. They were to make it a rule to
have their huts at least an hour’s walk from the nearest watering-
place; then their children would thrive and escape illness.”
The explanation of the name Makonde given by my informants is
somewhat different from that contained in the above legend, which I
extract from a little book (small, but packed with information), by
Pater Adams, entitled Lindi und sein Hinterland. Otherwise, my
results agree exactly with the statements of the legend. Washing?
Hapana—there is no such thing. Why should they do so? As it is, the
supply of water scarcely suffices for cooking and drinking; other
people do not wash, so why should the Makonde distinguish himself
by such needless eccentricity? As for shaving the head, the short,
woolly crop scarcely needs it,[49] so the second ancestral precept is
likewise easy enough to follow. Beyond this, however, there is
nothing ridiculous in the ancestor’s advice. I have obtained from
various local artists a fairly large number of figures carved in wood,
ranging from fifteen to twenty-three inches in height, and
representing women belonging to the great group of the Mavia,
Makonde, and Matambwe tribes. The carving is remarkably well
done and renders the female type with great accuracy, especially the
keloid ornamentation, to be described later on. As to the object and
meaning of their works the sculptors either could or (more probably)
would tell me nothing, and I was forced to content myself with the
scanty information vouchsafed by one man, who said that the figures
were merely intended to represent the nembo—the artificial
deformations of pelele, ear-discs, and keloids. The legend recorded
by Pater Adams places these figures in a new light. They must surely
be more than mere dolls; and we may even venture to assume that
they are—though the majority of present-day Makonde are probably
unaware of the fact—representations of the tribal ancestress.
 The references in the legend to the descent from Mahuta to the
Rovuma, and to a journey across the highlands into the Mbekuru
valley, undoubtedly indicate the previous history of the tribe, the
travels of the ancestral pair typifying the migrations of their
descendants. The descent to the neighbouring Rovuma valley, with
its extraordinary fertility and great abundance of game, is intelligible
at a glance—but the crossing of the Lukuledi depression, the ascent
to the Rondo Plateau and the descent to the Mbemkuru, also lie
within the bounds of probability, for all these districts have exactly
the same character as the extreme south. Now, however, comes a
point of especial interest for our bacteriological age. The primitive
Makonde did not enjoy their lives in the marshy river-valleys.
Disease raged among them, and many died. It was only after they
had returned to their original home near Mahuta, that the health
conditions of these people improved. We are very apt to think of the
African as a stupid person whose ignorance of nature is only equalled
by his fear of it, and who looks on all mishaps as caused by evil
spirits and malignant natural powers. It is much more correct to
assume in this case that the people very early learnt to distinguish
districts infested with malaria from those where it is absent.
This knowledge is crystallized in the
ancestral warning against settling in the
valleys and near the great waters, the
dwelling-places of disease and death. At the
same time, for security against the hostile
Mavia south of the Rovuma, it was enacted
that every settlement must be not less than a
certain distance from the southern edge of the
plateau. Such in fact is their mode of life at the
present day. It is not such a bad one, and
certainly they are both safer and more
comfortable than the Makua, the recent
intruders from the south, who have made USUAL METHOD OF
good their footing on the western edge of the CLOSING HUT-DOOR
plateau, extending over a fairly wide belt of
country. Neither Makua nor Makonde show in their dwellings
anything of the size and comeliness of the Yao houses in the plain,
especially at Masasi, Chingulungulu and Zuza’s. Jumbe Chauro, a
Makonde hamlet not far from Newala, on the road to Mahuta, is the
most important settlement of the tribe I have yet seen, and has fairly
spacious huts. But how slovenly is their construction compared with
the palatial residences of the elephant-hunters living in the plain.
The roofs are still more untidy than in the general run of huts during
the dry season, the walls show here and there the scanty beginnings
or the lamentable remains of the mud plastering, and the interior is a
veritable dog-kennel; dirt, dust and disorder everywhere. A few huts
only show any attempt at division into rooms, and this consists
merely of very roughly-made bamboo partitions. In one point alone
have I noticed any indication of progress—in the method of fastening
the door. Houses all over the south are secured in a simple but
ingenious manner. The door consists of a set of stout pieces of wood
or bamboo, tied with bark-string to two cross-pieces, and moving in
two grooves round one of the door-posts, so as to open inwards. If
the owner wishes to leave home, he takes two logs as thick as a man’s
upper arm and about a yard long. One of these is placed obliquely
against the middle of the door from the inside, so as to form an angle
of from 60° to 75° with the ground. He then places the second piece
horizontally across the first, pressing it downward with all his might.
It is kept in place by two strong posts planted in the ground a few
inches inside the door. This fastening is absolutely safe, but of course
cannot be applied to both doors at once, otherwise how could the
owner leave or enter his house? I have not yet succeeded in finding
out how the back door is fastened.

MAKONDE LOCK AND KEY AT JUMBE CHAURO

 This is the general way of closing a house. The Makonde at Jumbe
Chauro, however, have a much more complicated, solid and original
one. Here, too, the door is as already described, except that there is
only one post on the inside, standing by itself about six inches from
one side of the doorway. Opposite this post is a hole in the wall just
large enough to admit a man’s arm. The door is closed inside by a
large wooden bolt passing through a hole in this post and pressing
with its free end against the door. The other end has three holes into
which fit three pegs running in vertical grooves inside the post. The
door is opened with a wooden key about a foot long, somewhat
curved and sloped off at the butt; the other end has three pegs
corresponding to the holes, in the bolt, so that, when it is thrust
through the hole in the wall and inserted into the rectangular
opening in the post, the pegs can be lifted and the bolt drawn out.[50]

MODE OF INSERTING THE KEY

With no small pride first one householder and then a second

showed me on the spot the action of this greatest invention of the
Makonde Highlands. To both with an admiring exclamation of
“Vizuri sana!” (“Very fine!”). I expressed the wish to take back these
marvels with me to Ulaya, to show the Wazungu what clever fellows
the Makonde are. Scarcely five minutes after my return to camp at
Newala, the two men came up sweating under the weight of two
heavy logs which they laid down at my feet, handing over at the same
time the keys of the fallen fortress. Arguing, logically enough, that if
the key was wanted, the lock would be wanted with it, they had taken
their axes and chopped down the posts—as it never occurred to them
to dig them out of the ground and so bring them intact. Thus I have
two badly damaged specimens, and the owners, instead of praise,
come in for a blowing-up.
The Makua huts in the environs of Newala are especially
miserable; their more than slovenly construction reminds one of the
temporary erections of the Makua at Hatia’s, though the people here
have not been concerned in a war. It must therefore be due to
congenital idleness, or else to the absence of a powerful chief. Even
the baraza at Mlipa’s, a short hour’s walk south-east of Newala,
shares in this general neglect. While public buildings in this country
are usually looked after more or less carefully, this is in evident
danger of being blown over by the first strong easterly gale. The only
attractive object in this whole district is the grave of the late chief
Mlipa. I visited it in the morning, while the sun was still trying with
partial success to break through the rolling mists, and the circular
grove of tall euphorbias, which, with a broken pot, is all that marks
the old king’s resting-place, impressed one with a touch of pathos.
Even my very materially-minded carriers seemed to feel something
of the sort, for instead of their usual ribald songs, they chanted
solemnly, as we marched on through the dense green of the Makonde
bush:—
 “We shall arrive with the great master; we stand in a row and have
no fear about getting our food and our money from the Serkali (the
Government). We are not afraid; we are going along with the great
master, the lion; we are going down to the coast and back.”
With regard to the characteristic features of the various tribes here
on the western edge of the plateau, I can arrive at no other
conclusion than the one already come to in the plain, viz., that it is
impossible for anyone but a trained anthropologist to assign any
given individual at once to his proper tribe. In fact, I think that even
an anthropological specialist, after the most careful examination,
might find it a difficult task to decide. The whole congeries of peoples
collected in the region bounded on the west by the great Central
African rift, Tanganyika and Nyasa, and on the east by the Indian
Ocean, are closely related to each other—some of their languages are
only distinguished from one another as dialects of the same speech,
and no doubt all the tribes present the same shape of skull and
structure of skeleton. Thus, surely, there can be no very striking
differences in outward appearance.
 Even did such exist, I should have no time
to concern myself with them, for day after day,
I have to see or hear, as the case may be—in
any case to grasp and record—an
extraordinary number of ethnographic
phenomena. I am almost disposed to think it
fortunate that some departments of inquiry, at
least, are barred by external circumstances.
Chief among these is the subject of iron-
working. We are apt to think of Africa as a
country where iron ore is everywhere, so to
speak, to be picked up by the roadside, and
where it would be quite surprising if the
inhabitants had not learnt to smelt the
material ready to their hand. In fact, the
knowledge of this art ranges all over the
continent, from the Kabyles in the north to the
Kafirs in the south. Here between the Rovuma
and the Lukuledi the conditions are not so
favourable. According to the statements of the
Makonde, neither ironstone nor any other
form of iron ore is known to them. They have
not therefore advanced to the art of smelting
the metal, but have hitherto bought all their
THE ANCESTRESS OF
THE MAKONDE
iron implements from neighbouring tribes.
Even in the plain the inhabitants are not much
better off. Only one man now living is said to
understand the art of smelting iron. This old fundi lives close to
Huwe, that isolated, steep-sided block of granite which rises out of
the green solitude between Masasi and Chingulungulu, and whose
jagged and splintered top meets the traveller’s eye everywhere. While
still at Masasi I wished to see this man at work, but was told that,
frightened by the rising, he had retired across the Rovuma, though
he would soon return. All subsequent inquiries as to whether the
fundi had come back met with the genuine African answer, “Bado”
(“Not yet”).
 BRAZIER

Some consolation was afforded me by a brassfounder, whom I

came across in the bush near Akundonde’s. This man is the favourite
of women, and therefore no doubt of the gods; he welds the glittering
brass rods purchased at the coast into those massive, heavy rings
which, on the wrists and ankles of the local fair ones, continually give
me fresh food for admiration. Like every decent master-craftsman he
had all his tools with him, consisting of a pair of bellows, three
crucibles and a hammer—nothing more, apparently. He was quite
willing to show his skill, and in a twinkling had fixed his bellows on
the ground. They are simply two goat-skins, taken off whole, the four
legs being closed by knots, while the upper opening, intended to
admit the air, is kept stretched by two pieces of wood. At the lower
end of the skin a smaller opening is left into which a wooden tube is
stuck. The fundi has quickly borrowed a heap of wood-embers from
the nearest hut; he then fixes the free ends of the two tubes into an
earthen pipe, and clamps them to the ground by means of a bent
piece of wood. Now he fills one of his small clay crucibles, the dross
on which shows that they have been long in use, with the yellow
material, places it in the midst of the embers, which, at present are
only faintly glimmering, and begins his work. In quick alternation
the smith’s two hands move up and down with the open ends of the
bellows; as he raises his hand he holds the slit wide open, so as to let
the air enter the skin bag unhindered. In pressing it down he closes
the bag, and the air puffs through the bamboo tube and clay pipe into
the fire, which quickly burns up. The smith, however, does not keep
on with this work, but beckons to another man, who relieves him at
the bellows, while he takes some more tools out of a large skin pouch
carried on his back. I look on in wonder as, with a smooth round
stick about the thickness of a finger, he bores a few vertical holes into
the clean sand of the soil. This should not be difficult, yet the man
seems to be taking great pains over it. Then he fastens down to the
ground, with a couple of wooden clamps, a neat little trough made by
splitting a joint of bamboo in half, so that the ends are closed by the
two knots. At last the yellow metal has attained the right consistency,
and the fundi lifts the crucible from the fire by means of two sticks
split at the end to serve as tongs. A short swift turn to the left—a
tilting of the crucible—and the molten brass, hissing and giving forth
clouds of smoke, flows first into the bamboo mould and then into the
holes in the ground.
The technique of this backwoods craftsman may not be very far
advanced, but it cannot be denied that he knows how to obtain an
adequate result by the simplest means. The ladies of highest rank in
this country—that is to say, those who can afford it, wear two kinds
of these massive brass rings, one cylindrical, the other semicircular
in section. The latter are cast in the most ingenious way in the
bamboo mould, the former in the circular hole in the sand. It is quite
a simple matter for the fundi to fit these bars to the limbs of his fair
customers; with a few light strokes of his hammer he bends the
pliable brass round arm or ankle without further inconvenience to
the wearer.
SHAPING THE POT

SMOOTHING WITH MAIZE-COB

CUTTING THE EDGE

 FINISHING THE BOTTOM

LAST SMOOTHING BEFORE

BURNING

FIRING THE BRUSH-PILE

 LIGHTING THE FARTHER SIDE OF
THE PILE

TURNING THE RED-HOT VESSEL

NYASA WOMAN MAKING POTS AT MASASI

Pottery is an art which must always and everywhere excite the
interest of the student, just because it is so intimately connected with
the development of human culture, and because its relics are one of
the principal factors in the reconstruction of our own condition in
prehistoric times. I shall always remember with pleasure the two or
three afternoons at Masasi when Salim Matola’s mother, a slightly-
built, graceful, pleasant-looking woman, explained to me with
touching patience, by means of concrete illustrations, the ceramic art
of her people. The only implements for this primitive process were a
lump of clay in her left hand, and in the right a calabash containing
the following valuables: the fragment of a maize-cob stripped of all
its grains, a smooth, oval pebble, about the size of a pigeon’s egg, a
few chips of gourd-shell, a bamboo splinter about the length of one’s
hand, a small shell, and a bunch of some herb resembling spinach.
 Nothing more. The woman scraped with the
shell a round, shallow hole in the soft, fine
sand of the soil, and, when an active young
girl had filled the calabash with water for her,
she began to knead the clay. As if by magic it
gradually assumed the shape of a rough but
already well-shaped vessel, which only wanted
a little touching up with the instruments
before mentioned. I looked out with the
MAKUA WOMAN closest attention for any indication of the use
MAKING A POT. of the potter’s wheel, in however rudimentary
SHOWS THE a form, but no—hapana (there is none). The
BEGINNINGS OF THE embryo pot stood firmly in its little
POTTER’S WHEEL
depression, and the woman walked round it in
a stooping posture, whether she was removing
small stones or similar foreign bodies with the maize-cob, smoothing
the inner or outer surface with the splinter of bamboo, or later, after
letting it dry for a day, pricking in the ornamentation with a pointed
bit of gourd-shell, or working out the bottom, or cutting the edge
with a sharp bamboo knife, or giving the last touches to the finished
vessel. This occupation of the women is infinitely toilsome, but it is
without doubt an accurate reproduction of the process in use among
our ancestors of the Neolithic and Bronze ages.
There is no doubt that the invention of pottery, an item in human
progress whose importance cannot be over-estimated, is due to
women. Rough, coarse and unfeeling, the men of the horde range
over the countryside. When the united cunning of the hunters has
succeeded in killing the game; not one of them thinks of carrying
home the spoil. A bright fire, kindled by a vigorous wielding of the
drill, is crackling beside them; the animal has been cleaned and cut
up secundum artem, and, after a slight singeing, will soon disappear
under their sharp teeth; no one all this time giving a single thought
to wife or child.
To what shifts, on the other hand, the primitive wife, and still more
the primitive mother, was put! Not even prehistoric stomachs could
endure an unvarying diet of raw food. Something or other suggested
the beneficial effect of hot water on the majority of approved but
indigestible dishes. Perhaps a neighbour had tried holding the hard
roots or tubers over the fire in a calabash filled with water—or maybe
an ostrich-egg-shell, or a hastily improvised vessel of bark. They
became much softer and more palatable than they had previously
been; but, unfortunately, the vessel could not stand the fire and got
charred on the outside. That can be remedied, thought our
ancestress, and plastered a layer of wet clay round a similar vessel.
This is an improvement; the cooking utensil remains uninjured, but
the heat of the fire has shrunk it, so that it is loose in its shell. The
next step is to detach it, so, with a firm grip and a jerk, shell and
kernel are separated, and pottery is invented. Perhaps, however, the
discovery which led to an intelligent use of the burnt-clay shell, was
made in a slightly different way. Ostrich-eggs and calabashes are not
to be found in every part of the world, but everywhere mankind has
arrived at the art of making baskets out of pliant materials, such as
bark, bast, strips of palm-leaf, supple twigs, etc. Our inventor has no
water-tight vessel provided by nature. “Never mind, let us line the
basket with clay.” This answers the purpose, but alas! the basket gets
burnt over the blazing fire, the woman watches the process of
cooking with increasing uneasiness, fearing a leak, but no leak
appears. The food, done to a turn, is eaten with peculiar relish; and
the cooking-vessel is examined, half in curiosity, half in satisfaction
at the result. The plastic clay is now hard as stone, and at the same
time looks exceedingly well, for the neat plaiting of the burnt basket
is traced all over it in a pretty pattern. Thus, simultaneously with
pottery, its ornamentation was invented.
Primitive woman has another claim to respect. It was the man,
roving abroad, who invented the art of producing fire at will, but the
woman, unable to imitate him in this, has been a Vestal from the
earliest times. Nothing gives so much trouble as the keeping alight of
the smouldering brand, and, above all, when all the men are absent
from the camp. Heavy rain-clouds gather, already the first large
drops are falling, the first gusts of the storm rage over the plain. The
little flame, a greater anxiety to the woman than her own children,
flickers unsteadily in the blast. What is to be done? A sudden thought
occurs to her, and in an instant she has constructed a primitive hut
out of strips of bark, to protect the flame against rain and wind.
This, or something very like it, was the way in which the principle
of the house was discovered; and even the most hardened misogynist
cannot fairly refuse a woman the credit of it. The protection of the
hearth-fire from the weather is the germ from which the human
dwelling was evolved. Men had little, if any share, in this forward
step, and that only at a late stage. Even at the present day, the
plastering of the housewall with clay and the manufacture of pottery
are exclusively the women’s business. These are two very significant
survivals. Our European kitchen-garden, too, is originally a woman’s
invention, and the hoe, the primitive instrument of agriculture, is,
characteristically enough, still used in this department. But the
noblest achievement which we owe to the other sex is unquestionably
the art of cookery. Roasting alone—the oldest process—is one for
which men took the hint (a very obvious one) from nature. It must
have been suggested by the scorched carcase of some animal
overtaken by the destructive forest-fires. But boiling—the process of
improving organic substances by the help of water heated to boiling-
point—is a much later discovery. It is so recent that it has not even
yet penetrated to all parts of the world. The Polynesians understand
how to steam food, that is, to cook it, neatly wrapped in leaves, in a
hole in the earth between hot stones, the air being excluded, and
(sometimes) a few drops of water sprinkled on the stones; but they
do not understand boiling.
To come back from this digression, we find that the slender Nyasa
woman has, after once more carefully examining the finished pot,
put it aside in the shade to dry. On the following day she sends me
word by her son, Salim Matola, who is always on hand, that she is
going to do the burning, and, on coming out of my house, I find her
already hard at work. She has spread on the ground a layer of very
dry sticks, about as thick as one’s thumb, has laid the pot (now of a
yellowish-grey colour) on them, and is piling brushwood round it.
My faithful Pesa mbili, the mnyampara, who has been standing by,
most obligingly, with a lighted stick, now hands it to her. Both of
them, blowing steadily, light the pile on the lee side, and, when the
flame begins to catch, on the weather side also. Soon the whole is in a
blaze, but the dry fuel is quickly consumed and the fire dies down, so
that we see the red-hot vessel rising from the ashes. The woman
turns it continually with a long stick, sometimes one way and
sometimes another, so that it may be evenly heated all over. In
twenty minutes she rolls it out of the ash-heap, takes up the bundle
of spinach, which has been lying for two days in a jar of water, and
sprinkles the red-hot clay with it. The places where the drops fall are
marked by black spots on the uniform reddish-brown surface. With a
sigh of relief, and with visible satisfaction, the woman rises to an
erect position; she is standing just in a line between me and the fire,
from which a cloud of smoke is just rising: I press the ball of my
camera, the shutter clicks—the apotheosis is achieved! Like a
priestess, representative of her inventive sex, the graceful woman
stands: at her feet the hearth-fire she has given us beside her the
invention she has devised for us, in the background the home she has
built for us.
At Newala, also, I have had the manufacture of pottery carried on
in my presence. Technically the process is better than that already
described, for here we find the beginnings of the potter’s wheel,
which does not seem to exist in the plains; at least I have seen
nothing of the sort. The artist, a frightfully stupid Makua woman, did
not make a depression in the ground to receive the pot she was about
to shape, but used instead a large potsherd. Otherwise, she went to
work in much the same way as Salim’s mother, except that she saved
herself the trouble of walking round and round her work by squatting
at her ease and letting the pot and potsherd rotate round her; this is
surely the first step towards a machine. But it does not follow that
the pot was improved by the process. It is true that it was beautifully
rounded and presented a very creditable appearance when finished,
but the numerous large and small vessels which I have seen, and, in
part, collected, in the “less advanced” districts, are no less so. We
moderns imagine that instruments of precision are necessary to
produce excellent results. Go to the prehistoric collections of our
museums and look at the pots, urns and bowls of our ancestors in the
dim ages of the past, and you will at once perceive your error.
MAKING LONGITUDINAL CUT IN
BARK

DRAWING THE BARK OFF THE LOG

REMOVING THE OUTER BARK

 BEATING THE BARK

WORKING THE BARK-CLOTH AFTER BEATING, TO MAKE IT

SOFT

MANUFACTURE OF BARK-CLOTH AT NEWALA

To-day, nearly the whole population of German East Africa is
clothed in imported calico. This was not always the case; even now in
some parts of the north dressed skins are still the prevailing wear,
and in the north-western districts—east and north of Lake
Tanganyika—lies a zone where bark-cloth has not yet been
superseded. Probably not many generations have passed since such
bark fabrics and kilts of skins were the only clothing even in the
south. Even to-day, large quantities of this bright-red or drab
material are still to be found; but if we wish to see it, we must look in
the granaries and on the drying stages inside the native huts, where
it serves less ambitious uses as wrappings for those seeds and fruits
which require to be packed with special care. The salt produced at
Masasi, too, is packed for transport to a distance in large sheets of
bark-cloth. Wherever I found it in any degree possible, I studied the
process of making this cloth. The native requisitioned for the
purpose arrived, carrying a log between two and three yards long and
as thick as his thigh, and nothing else except a curiously-shaped
mallet and the usual long, sharp and pointed knife which all men and
boys wear in a belt at their backs without a sheath—horribile dictu!
[51]
Silently he squats down before me, and with two rapid cuts has
drawn a couple of circles round the log some two yards apart, and
slits the bark lengthwise between them with the point of his knife.
With evident care, he then scrapes off the outer rind all round the
log, so that in a quarter of an hour the inner red layer of the bark
shows up brightly-coloured between the two untouched ends. With
some trouble and much caution, he now loosens the bark at one end,
and opens the cylinder. He then stands up, takes hold of the free
edge with both hands, and turning it inside out, slowly but steadily
pulls it off in one piece. Now comes the troublesome work of
scraping all superfluous particles of outer bark from the outside of
the long, narrow piece of material, while the inner side is carefully
scrutinised for defective spots. At last it is ready for beating. Having
signalled to a friend, who immediately places a bowl of water beside
him, the artificer damps his sheet of bark all over, seizes his mallet,
lays one end of the stuff on the smoothest spot of the log, and
hammers away slowly but continuously. “Very simple!” I think to
myself. “Why, I could do that, too!”—but I am forced to change my
opinions a little later on; for the beating is quite an art, if the fabric is
not to be beaten to pieces. To prevent the breaking of the fibres, the
stuff is several times folded across, so as to interpose several
thicknesses between the mallet and the block. At last the required
state is reached, and the fundi seizes the sheet, still folded, by both
ends, and wrings it out, or calls an assistant to take one end while he
holds the other. The cloth produced in this way is not nearly so fine
and uniform in texture as the famous Uganda bark-cloth, but it is
quite soft, and, above all, cheap.
Now, too, I examine the mallet. My craftsman has been using the
simpler but better form of this implement, a conical block of some
hard wood, its base—the striking surface—being scored across and
across with more or less deeply-cut grooves, and the handle stuck
into a hole in the middle. The other and earlier form of mallet is
shaped in the same way, but the head is fastened by an ingenious
network of bark strips into the split bamboo serving as a handle. The
observation so often made, that ancient customs persist longest in
connection with religious ceremonies and in the life of children, here
finds confirmation. As we shall soon see, bark-cloth is still worn
during the unyago,[52] having been prepared with special solemn
ceremonies; and many a mother, if she has no other garment handy,
will still put her little one into a kilt of bark-cloth, which, after all,
looks better, besides being more in keeping with its African
surroundings, than the ridiculous bit of print from Ulaya.
MAKUA WOMEN