ABSTRACT
Nontariff barriers (NTB) pose problems for firms that dwarf those associated with tariffs. Corporate decisionmakers seeking to gain access to a potentially lucrative market are often faced with an array of barriers to market entry. Larger firms are often more successful in responding to NTBs because they have staffs and operations in many foreign markets. One way to continue to try to serve such a market in spite of NTBs would be to license the product or enter a joint venture with a local partner. A number of US companies, especially large firms, verified that they had located research and development (R&D) operations in host nations to gain information about future regulations, standards or acceptance criteria. R&D operations can be located in host nations in response to NTBs or market barriers. The company also faced difficult NTBs over type-certification for sale in Europe.
