Factors Stimulating Export Business: An Empirical Investigation

Abstract

The article reports the findings of an empirical investigation into the export stimulation behavior of Cypriot manufacturers. The study revealed that the thrust of the motivation originated from internal and proactive forces, in contrast to the findings of earlier research. Export stimuli were categorized into eight conceptually meaningful groups using factor analysis, with managerial and enterprise competence being the most significant stimulus. Overall, both organizational and internationalization parameters had a weak discriminating effect on the emerging stimulating factors; however, some of these parameters exhibited a significant differentiating role in relation to certain export stimuli. Several conclusions are extracted from the findings, and directions for future research are indicated.