The Clothing industry
Gwlad is a country that enjoys high population which is a good source of market for clothing. This is an advantage of investing in the clothing sector. Tourists visiting the country due to the rich cultural diversity are likely to add to the market for clothing (Bull, 1995: 241-269). The sector also provides employment opportunity to many. It is common that big companies that enjoy high economies of scale are likely to use their influence to control the market keeping smaller firms out through unfair practices such as price fixing and creating cartels which lead to monopolies.
The country should form an intervention policy such as competition policy to control the firms in the clothing sector so as to ensure equal market opportunities and abolish unfair trade. In doing this however, it should consider the large population of workers relying on the clothing industry so that it does not false exit of certain firms leading to loss of jobs. Automotive industry. The automotive industry would be a good investment for the country to undertake because of its advantage in technological advancement due to its location in the west.
Policies necessary to control this industry is the use of competition policies, research and development, technology and innovation policies which will ensure more development in the industry. Semiconductor industry. This seems like an excellent opportunity for Gwlad and comes with promises of good returns and creation of four thousand jobs in five years. It however comes at a price of ten million Euros per year for the implementation of the program. Gwlad should weigh its options depending on resources available to them (Fogg 2000: 43-46; Bulmer-Thomas, V. (1992).
The advantage of Gwlad lies in its access to high technology and a large professional workforce that would supply the industry. However, due to its poor trade options caused by its lack of proper ties with other countries would lead to a problem in marketing since the products cannot be sold in Gwlad alone. Just like in the clothing industry, the automotive industry needs to be regulated to prevent policies taken by the large companies from negatively impacting on the market. Agri-foods The food industry is important to every economy considering that food is a basic necessity for survival.
The country cannot risk letting the industry fail due to improper market conditions created by large firms. Monopolies arising would lead to high prices of food which is harmful to the economy. Gwlad should therefore take incentives to intervene through pricing and competition policies to regulate the market. Financial Services. The project is attractive and promises to offer four thousand jobs. The amount to be invested per year which is five million Euros per year is more considerable than that of the semiconductor industry.
Financial services are bound to trigger development in the country with people borrowing for business expansion purposes. Apart from considering the benefits Gwlad should also evaluate the costs involved versus the revenue (Fogg 2000: 43-46; Bulmer-Thomas, V. (1992). Logistics. This offer is not as attractive as previous options that Gwlad had. It may however be used to the advantage of Gwlad which is not well developed in production because it would mostly focus in streamlining supply chains which do not require production.
Communication and transport networks would however need to be improved significantly. After analyzing the available options, Gwlad should aim at developing the financial and the agri-food sectors. Considering that Gwlad has no proper trade ties with neighboring countries, inward investment seems to be the best alternative as per now. The country does not seem to be well developed in most areas including production and technology as compared to other countries thus putting it at a competitive disadvantage.
The automotive industry and the chip industry cannot be viable because the market at home may not probably offer enough demand yet exporting would lead to high costs in taxes for Gwlad. Financial services and especially banks and insurance companies are the industries of the future and if these are tapped effectively could have a huge potential to develop the industry (Stevenson 2006: 111-117). . The high number of professionals in Gwlad will effectively fill the positions in the insurance, banking and call centres. The agri-food industry is assured of increasing demand due to the large population of Gwlad.
It is also a vital industry that can not be ignored. Employment policy is key to any organization and these two sectors form an excellent source of jobs (Pleeter, 1990: 68-84; Meir, 2004: 231-268). The agri-food industry employs the most people in Gwlad giving jobs to 30,000 people while the financial sector will provide 4000 jobs in five years. It is essential that the government intervene in these industries. The influence being felt in the agri-food industry due to the large firms may negatively influence the market due to the possibility of these firms which enjoy high economies to scale forcing smaller firms to exit.
They may then use monopoly power to oppress consumers. The government should intervene so as to invest in the financial services firm that will ensure positive development in the country (Stevenson 2006: 111-117). Good strategies need to be formulated in order to ensure that these two sectors thrive well (Brace, 1993: 507-525: Leistritz, 1991: 75-94). A good strategy is the one that has well laid down policies to guide the process. The first policy that the government should take is the competition policy. This will ensure that the market system is fair for all firms to co-exist.
Marketing policies and strategies are essential for inter sectoral development. The financial services will benefit from these as more people will be attracted to obtain money to invest and seek insurance services. In doing this the country should also adopt policies that abolish trade restrictions to enhance good business environment. Fair competition should be allowed to take course with the government only intervening when there is dire need. The country seems to be behind in telecommunications which may hinder the effective flow of information.
According to Peterson (2001: 48-55), policies towards improving infrastructure should be put in place to improve trade and easy communication. Policies on technology also need to be introduced to improve efficiency. According to Bradford et al (2001: 211-265) technology is the best tool to improving efficiency and returns. In the financial services, improvement of technology will ensure faster services and proper storage and management of data. In the food industry, improvement of logistics system will help in improving the supply system.
A good strategy use to invest in the financial services should start with a market review and research to establish the viability of the investment (Rhoda: 2002: 14-58). An input-output analysis as a strategy must also be performed to weigh the costs against the benefits (Dewhurst, 1991: 18-32; Hewins, 1995: 14-29). The country should then go on to market the financial services to get customers for the same. A competition policy strategy would be good for the country to adopt as well because the competition improves innovation as firms try to outdo each other.
Competition policy should aim at removing trade barriers, minimization of monopolies and encouragement of research and development (Lesistritz, 1991: 214-231; Hunter, 1999: 25-45; Baker, 2002: 84-162). Development will therefore be more likely to occur leading to high income for the country and creation of jobs. In future, Gwlad should form a foreign market penetration strategy aimed at penetrating new markets to enhance trade mostly through dialogue to form trade relations (Peng, 2001: 794-829; Webster (2003: 33-34) .
Currently, the country has poor ties with the neighboring countries hence poor trade relations. It cannot effectively participate in international trade because it will incur high costs in taxation. Word Count (1648).
Reference List.
Baker, M. (2002). The Marketing Book. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann. Bradford, R. W. , Duncan, J. P. , Tarcy, B. (2001). Simplified Strategic Planning: a no-nonsense guide for busy people who want results fast!. UK: Chandler House Press. Brace, P. (1993). State government and economic performance. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press
