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Purpose This paper aims to identify the barriers that are linked to the institutional, external and social environmental factors in the emerging economies of South-East Asia (SEA). Through a comparative analysis of China, India and Pakistan, this study attempts to understand the constraints that might inhibit small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in this region from becoming more successful. Design/methodology/approach This study proposes an empirical research framework to identify the constraints to determinants of SMEs’ growth (the CDSG model) in an important geographic and industrial cluster of SEA countries including China, India and Pakistan. Six propositions are tested, using data from 1,443 SMEs obtained from Enterprise Survey Data Repository database from the World Bank. Ordinary least-squares estimation is applied for statistical analyses and testing of the research propositions. Findings The results show the differential effects of the proposed CDSG model in China, India and Pakistan. Access to external finance is found to be irrelevant to the growth of SMEs in China, while it has a positive influence in India and Pakistan. Furthermore, in terms of the innovation process, partial mediation is traced. Using the tax rate factor, negative mediation is found between CDSG variables and SMEs’ growth. Both mediators play different roles in firm growth activities, while the level of significance of some variables is found to be more relevant to a specific region rather than to all. Practical implications The prudent management of the proposed CDSG variables could revolutionize the constraints facing SME growth, making them into success factors. This could invigorate the growth of SMEs’ in SEA countries. The paper concludes with practical implications for policymakers and investors. Originality/value This SMEs’ theoretical framework is the first to use innovation and tax rate mediators to highlight the determinants of business growth in three SEA regional economies (China, India and Pakistan).

Knowledge transfer has been acknowledged as the conveyance of knowledge between actors in an exchange relationship. Inter-firm knowledge transfer considerations are particularly applicable to the viability of cooperative alliances. This paper attempts to identify and demonstrate the limitations and gaps in the existing theoretical approaches when it comes to understanding the phenomena of inter-organizational knowledge transfer relying on alliances in the competitive and changing environment.

This paper explores how innovation, developed through multi-sector partnerships within a regional context, has assisted in increasing the sustainability of the New Zealand fi shery industry. Qualitative data were collected from a single regional cluster, the Nelson/Marlborough seafood industry, located in the upper South Island -the largest seafood region in New Zealand. This context is unique in that New Zealand controls the world's fourth largest coastal fi shing zone, with a 200-mile exclusive economic fi shing zone (EEZ) established in 1978, and has one of the world's most innovative quota management systems. Analysis of the qualitative interview data demonstrated that: (1) collaboration among core fi rms was primarily at the product and process level, generally to improve the productivity of the fi rm; (2) opportunities for new sector growth were available from related industry collaboration; and (3) multi-sector collaborations involving both core fi rms and social infrastructure contributed more signifi cantly to sustainable strategic outcomes.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the historical development and characteristics of the globalizing Chinese automobile industry. Design/methodology/approach – This study is positioned as an exploratory case study, using data triangulation techniques based on archival research and published reports of statistical agencies both at central government and single industry level. Findings – China's automobile industry represents an extraordinary case of a development path toward globalization in a transitional economy. One of the obvious characteristics of the auto industry is that it necessitates technology transfer and innovative learning, which can be regarded as an important aspect of maintaining competitiveness in industrialization and global competition. The automobile industry in China is also characterized by state intervention and industrial regulations. The state initiated open-door reform has led to a mixed regulatory mechanism including both market-based competition and the legacy of a command economy. Other major features are demonstrated as follows: state-owned auto enterprises have been gradually given more freedom in the decision-making processes; the Chinese auto industry has shown phenomenal growth in the country's economic development with an average annual rate of about 9 percent. This achievement combined with the increasing impacts of globalization of production and market expansion has undoubtedly led to the increasing inflows of foreign direct investment in the form of international partnerships between the auto-producing MNCs and major local Chinese firms as per the industrial policies in the Chinese automobile industry. Originality/value – This paper addresses an important topic, the historical development path of the Chinese automobile industry, but to date, it has received very little research attention. It advances the institution-based perspective and therefore develops a better understanding of changes in China's automobile industry over the past decades since 1949 and concludes that the combination of the influences of foreign technology, China's industrial policies and institutional dynamic processes has resulted in a unique dynamic development path for the globalizing Chinese automobile industry.

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