UPDATE TO DOING BUSINESS IN GREATER CHINA

According to the article, only about one-third of multinational corporations have ever made a profit in China.
UPDATE 2006
http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/jan2006/sb20060105_958312.htm
culture
Http://www.legacee.com/Culture/CultureOverview.html
Xinhua’s new ban to be nothing more than a useless power play spurred on by China’s communist bureaucracy, which has become accustomed to freely manipulating public policy. This ridiculous notion will not however survive under WTO supervision, a powerful force which will ensure that free financial information flow will continue to provide growing Chinese firms the elemental foundations for expansion and opportunity, factors which will ultimately enrich the Chinese population providing more jobs and economic prosperity.
Source Article: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4a335dda-e8c4-11dc-913a0000779fd2ac.html

The main implication of doing business in China that we discussed in class that relates to some of the topics from this article is that China was then and still is a communist country.
Website: http://www.amanet.org/editorial/chinabusiness.htm

B. The business lesson here is that learning what the culture, traditions, market research, etc. is not always enough to break into any industry in Greater China. There is an awful bureaucratic system that takes place in order to establish there.
article link:
http://www.doingbusiness.org/ExploreTopics/StartingBusiness/Details.aspx?economyid=42

“Conditions at Chinese toy factories called 'brutal'”, by David Barboza, this article is about the Chinese work conditions in toy manufacturing. Many companies were under investigation due to the illegal treatment of employees. The companies in China are well known in the United States, even though the factories mistreating the workers, companies in the US continued to do business with them. “...brutal conditions" and illegal practices that exist in Chinese toy factories, many of which supply some of the world's biggest brand name toy makers, including Disney, Hasbro and Sega”.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/08/21/business/toyside.php

The article emphasizes how crucial it is to research foreign partners and how U.S.
Department of Commerce offices in Beijing, Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai,
Shenyang, and Hong Kong can provide lists of local business service providers,
consultants, and law firms.
(http://www.buyusa.gov/pittsburgh/adviceforchina.html)

After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight.
STATE AND CIA PRIMARILy USE OFFIICIAL DATA; so 'dramatic improvement" is questionable. Better than before. true; drmatic? questionable.
http://globaledge.msu.edu/countryInsights/country.asp?countryID=17&regionID=3

However, despite spectacular economic growth, exports, and inward investment, China's business climate still remains patchy for foreign companies, according to a survey conducted in March and April 2005 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan by the Center for International Business at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth. Again questionable on "spectacular" growth; patchy investment climate - agree.
http://www.tuck.dartmouth.edu/news/releases/pr20050524_china.html


As the entire world observed in August at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China has emerged with unparalleled force onto the world stage. Most businesses are aware of the lure of the Chinese market, and stories abound of unbridled opportunities and potential for financial gain. But with all great opportunities come significant risks. My experience practicing at an international law firm in Beijing, China, taught me first-hand that not every business can, or should, go to China. This experience also helped me gain some insight as to what any attorney advising a client about doing business in China should keep in mind.
http://www.thecompletelawyer.com/international-business/asia/in-china-you-play-by-another-set-of-rules-386.html

If the host country’s regulatory policies are too stringent, it may be hard for firms to operate and this would prohibit international business. If the opposite occurs, and regulatory polices laxed, then the local markets and economies would be corrupt and in disarray. The lesson is a very important one, for it brings new light to this issue that has been extensively researched and reported in recent times. The lesson further shows the complexity in international business and conveys the difficulty, for both firms and governments, to reach a business agreement that is fair to both parties.
Article: http://ageconsearch.umn.edu/handle/30689