HSBC Bank Canada Papers on Asia – serie

The HSBC Bank Canada Papers on Asia series was begun in 1995 to examine Canada's relationship with the East Asian economies and to reduce the information barriers resulting from distance and unfamiliarity in these markets. Six years on from the inception of the series, much has changed in the international environment. The Asian economies suffered a significant crash, a rapid rebound, only to slow again in 2000-2001. This, the sixth and last volume in the series, looks to the future. This new volume focuses on key issues facing the region that corporations and governments should understand, including East Asian regionalization initiatives, obstacles to continued rapid growth in China, aging and pension reform, and the changing security environment. In addition, the Canadian business performance six years on is re-evaluated. With contributions from leading scholars intimately familiar with both Canadian and East Asian business practices, these volumes are an indispensable resource for corporations and governments looking to expand their business into East Asia, or for anyone who wants to better understand Canada's complex relationship with the Asian countries.

Visions of life in the 1950s often spring from the United States: supermarkets, freeways, huge gleaming cars, bright new appliances, automated households. Historian Joy Parr looks beyond the generalizations about the indulgence of this era to find a specifically Canadian consumer culture. Focusing on the records left by consumer groups and manufacturers, and relying on interviews and letters from many Canadian women who had set up household in the decade after the war, she reveals exactly how and why Canadian homemakers distinguished themselves from the consumer frenzy of their southern neighbours.Domestic Goods focuses primarily on the design, production, promotion, and consumption of furniture and appliances. For Parr, such a focus demands an analysis of the intertwining of the political, economic, and aesthetic. Parr examines how the shortage of appliances in the early postwar years was a direct result of government reconstruction policy, and how the international style of 'high modernism' reflected the postwar dream of free trade. But while manufacturers devised new plans for the consumer, depression-era frugality and a conscious setting of priorities within the family led potential customers to evade and rework what was offered them, eventually influencing the kinds of goods created.This book addresses questions such as, who designed furniture and appliances, and how were these designs arrived at? What was the role of consumer groups in influencing manufacturers and government policy? Why did women prefer their old wringer washers for over a decade after the automatic washer was brought in? In finding the answers the author celebrates and ultimately suggests reclaiming a particularly Canadian way of consuming.

This volume is the third in a series that examines Canada's economic relationships with the countries of East Asia. The purpose of this volume is to illuminate the links among the peoples of the region that Canadians needs to understand when doing business abroad or cooperating with East Asians in North America. The book's six papers examine the role of culture in institutional similarities and differences, both within East Asia and between East Asia and the west, the impact immigrants have on the receiving economy, the role of education and human capital in economic growth, and the role international linkages like trade, investment, cooperation and immigration play in the spread of knowledge.

This volume addresses the two key financing constraints that firms must face: taxation and finance. The taxation analysis focuses on how tax systems in selected Asian economies affect growth and the relative competitiveness of foreign and domestic enterprises. It outlines key features of the systems and provides a set of guidelines for potential foreign investors as to how these systems compare with each other (and with those in Canada and the United States) and predict future developments (including financial innovation and the internet).The study of financial frameworks focuses on corporate finance and analyzes the relationship between financing patterns and the level of development of securities markets and financial liberalization in the region. It focuses on the issue of how firms finance investments and the extent to which they depend on retained earnings and funding obtained through the market.Both studies include Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines. Both also consider the implications of taxation for savings and investment flows in domestic economies and across borders-and the implications of public sector demand for savings for corporate financing constraints.

This volume examines how foreign firms, which are entering or operating in various Asian countries, have responded to the obstacles and opportunities which were identified in the preceding volumes of this series. There is an overview chapter and seven case studies of Canadian and American-based businesses.The studies cover a variety of sectors such as telecommunication, finance, and engineering services. The authors highlight a range of issues that have to be resolved when operating in particular countries. The outcome of the bargaining process on entry into another country, for example, or the approach taken in personnel relations, can be critical to success or failure.