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INTER‐FIRM LINKAGES, ETHNIC NETWORKS, AND TERRITORIAL AGGLOMERATION: CHINESE COMPUTER FIRMS IN LOS ANGELES
Author(s) -
Zhou Yu
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
papers in regional science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.937
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1435-5957
pISSN - 1056-8190
DOI - 10.1111/j.1435-5597.1996.tb00666.x
Subject(s) - ethnic group , economies of agglomeration , economic geography , business , ethnic community , distribution (mathematics) , identity (music) , industrial organization , geography , political science , economic growth , economics , mathematics , law , physics , acoustics , mathematical analysis
Drawing from flexible production literature on industrial networks, this research pays particular attention to the socially embedded nature of firm linkages in a distribution sector. The empirical study of Chinese‐owned computer wholesale firms within Los Angeles County shows that the presence of ethnic identity plays a significant role in the internal operation and external transactions of Chinese firms. Ethnic relations facilitate interactions within the ethnic group, producing a closely knit ethnic network within the industry. The heavy reliance on ethnic networks also has led Chinese firms to a notable geographical separation from the remaining firms in the same sector.