June, 2011

Ms- 64 : International Marketing

SECTION – A

1.  (a) What are the reasons for a firm entering into international markets ? Discuss giving

suitable examples.

(b) In the context of international marketing, do you think that the political risk would be country specific or firm specific or both ? Elaborate.

2.  (a) Explain the modus operandi of a letter of credit in international transactions.

(b) 'An international marketer has to find out a trade-off between standardized and customized products as it is difficult to evolve a global product'. Do you agree with the above statement ? Justify your answer with suitable examples.

3.  (a) Now do media options available to international marketers vary across regions ? Discuss with the help of examples.

(b) With the help of examples, explain how a marketer can use "country attractiveness competitive strengths" matrix to define the direction of growth of the organisation.

4.  Write short notes on any three of the following :

(a)  Scope of international marketing research

(b)  Incoterms

(c)  Deemed exports

(d)  Decision areas in strategic planning for international marketing

(e)  Transfer pricing

SECTION – B

5.  Study the case given below and answer the questions given at the end.

HI - FASHION LTD.

Hi-Fashion Ltd. is a small  scale  manufacturer of high quality fashion garments. Its annual sales is Rs 35 million, mostly in a few major cities in India. It does not have its own distribution outlets but markets its products under its own brand name through selected retailers. Domestic market for fashion garments is fairly limited and also does not offer any. Substantial growth in the immediate future The proprietor of Hi-Fashion Ltd. is considering to enter international markets. He undertook a market survey and found that European Union (EU) is the most lucrative apparel market in the world and has following characteristics.

(i)  EU wages and fringe benefits are very high and hence its apparel industry is mainly dependent on import from developing countries.

(ii)  Packaging is of concern to them and hence exporters have to modify the packing or descriptive text on them

(iii)  Retail mark ups are high

(iv)  Two seasons are there in which buying takes place in EU-summers and winters. Six months advance buying is a norm for meeting season requirements.

(v)  There are apparel chains spread out in EU.

Questions :

(a)  What alternative market entry strategies can be used by Hi-Fashion Ltd. ?

(b)  Discuss the importance of study of cultural factors for Hi-Fashion Ltd.

(c)  What kind of assistance can Hi-Fashion Ltd. get from different institutions in India