Browsing by Subject "WTO"

This Master’s Thesis studies the main barriers in exporting forest products from Finland to Russia. The barriers are studied on three levels: the home market in Finland, the host market in Russia, and the internal resources and organization of the firms. In addition, the perceptions of industry producers on Russia’s WTO membership are examined. The focus of the study is on the mechanical forest industry circumstances and on the perceptions of small and medium-size producers that are currently not exporting to Russia. The home and host markets are examined through analyses of previous findings with emphasis on the most influential aspects. In addition, a survey is conducted to study the perceptions of producers. The sample consists of 28 small and medium-size producers within the mechanical forest industry in Finland. The survey was conducted between January and February 2013. The main barriers on the home market were in connection to economic circumstances. The production costs and the challenging competitive circumstances in particular were highlighted. In the host market, challenges were more complex and emerged from a web of factors. Nevertheless, emphasis was given to bureaucracy, corruption, and legal aspects. The surveyed industry producers stressed barriers emerging from the host market. Smaller firms were particularly concerned with cultural and language aspects. The WTO membership was perceived to have only a neutral effect in terms of instigating export activities. The results of this study thus indicate that potential exporters in Finland face a number of export barriers, and Russia’s WTO membership alone does not result in greater inclination towards exporting.