The purpose of this study is to analyze the factors underlying the selection of export channels by exporting firms. The data used in this study were obtained from interviews with 73 firms in Taegu doing export business with Japan. The author analyzed the following three points ; 1) characteristics of export channels selected from an international viewpoint, 2) relations between spatial distribution of customer firms in Japan and selection of export channels by exporting firms, and 3) factors affecting those export channels.
The results are summarized as follows;
1. A cluster analysis identified three types of channel selected : direct export (35 firms, 48% of the total), semi-direct export (18 firms, 25%), and indirect export (20 firms, 27%). This result shows the advanced stages of internationalization of the firms studied, according to the Nakano and Kolde models.
2. An analysis of the variance of transactions with customer firms in major cities in Japan by type reveals that Taegu's linkages with Osaka and Tokyo are significantly stronger than those with other cities, reflecting the fact that customer firms are concentrated more in Osaka and Tokyo than in Fukuoka and Nagoya, and that there is no relation between selection of export channels and distribution of customer firms.
3. A factor analysis and a discriminatory analysis revealed five factors underlying the selection of export channels : advantages to growth of exporting firms, concomitant functions with transactions, characteristics of transactions, positive attitudes to export marketing, and international competitiveness of exporting firms
