4
K. Chinen et al.
“Chinese EVs are still several years behind the global leaders in terms of technologies” (Schmidt 2018). The purpose of this study is to examine the US consumers’
reliance on Country-Of-Origin (COO) information in evaluating the quality of the
Chinese-brand EVs (CBEVs) made-in various countries.
China contributes to approximately 65% of the US trade deficits in 2017. This
trade imbalance led to the US-China trade war in 2018. Therefore, the attitudes and
opinions of the US consumers towards China and its products, directly and indirectly,
may influence demand for products of Chinese-brand products or products made in
China. The US President Trump’s campaign in tweeting and preaching China’s unfair
policies does not help improve China’s country image. It is very important for China
to know its product image in foreign markets, particularly in the US. This research is
timely because Chinese companies are reported to open stores focusing on sales of
EVs in the US market as early as 2019. Despite the length of exposure to “Made-in
China” products and significant demand observed for Chinese products in the US
market, previous studies show that the image of “Made-in China” is stereotyped.
The outline of this paper is as follows. First, we state the theoretical background
and research questions. Second, we examine the methodology used to conduct our
investigation. Third, we present the results of the data analysis and hypotheses testing.
Fourth, we summarize the research findings and discuss both practical implications.
In the last section, we conclude and investigate possible avenues for future research.
1.2 Literature Review
Past studies find that COO provides an important informational cue in consumers’
evaluations of products and have empirically demonstrated country equity in their
studies (Heslop and Papadopoulos 1993). With the increasing economic interdependence of national economies across the world, production occurs sequentially across
multiple countries. Multiple countries of origin may have confused consumers in
identifying the actual origin of the product. Jaffe and Nebenzahl (2006) state that
“companies often ignore the country image effect altogether, treating the world as a
single market and source of products” (Jaffe and Nebenzahl 2006). They warn the
tendency of making sourcing decisions “based on comparative advantage and cost
differentials only, to the exclusion of image considerations” (Jaffe and Nebenzahl
2006).
1.2.1 Product Quality, Perceived Benefits, and Perceived
Risks
Cross-national studies of the perceptions of “Made in” images are important because
of their managerial implications for global and multinational companies. International marketers, marketing scholars, economists, and politicians understand that
K. Chinen et al.
“Chinese EVs are still several years behind the global leaders in terms of technologies” (Schmidt 2018). The purpose of this study is to examine the US consumers’
reliance on Country-Of-Origin (COO) information in evaluating the quality of the
Chinese-brand EVs (CBEVs) made-in various countries.
China contributes to approximately 65% of the US trade deficits in 2017. This
trade imbalance led to the US-China trade war in 2018. Therefore, the attitudes and
opinions of the US consumers towards China and its products, directly and indirectly,
may influence demand for products of Chinese-brand products or products made in
China. The US President Trump’s campaign in tweeting and preaching China’s unfair
policies does not help improve China’s country image. It is very important for China
to know its product image in foreign markets, particularly in the US. This research is
timely because Chinese companies are reported to open stores focusing on sales of
EVs in the US market as early as 2019. Despite the length of exposure to “Made-in
China” products and significant demand observed for Chinese products in the US
market, previous studies show that the image of “Made-in China” is stereotyped.
The outline of this paper is as follows. First, we state the theoretical background
and research questions. Second, we examine the methodology used to conduct our
investigation. Third, we present the results of the data analysis and hypotheses testing.
Fourth, we summarize the research findings and discuss both practical implications.
In the last section, we conclude and investigate possible avenues for future research.
1.2 Literature Review
Past studies find that COO provides an important informational cue in consumers’
evaluations of products and have empirically demonstrated country equity in their
studies (Heslop and Papadopoulos 1993). With the increasing economic interdependence of national economies across the world, production occurs sequentially across
multiple countries. Multiple countries of origin may have confused consumers in
identifying the actual origin of the product. Jaffe and Nebenzahl (2006) state that
“companies often ignore the country image effect altogether, treating the world as a
single market and source of products” (Jaffe and Nebenzahl 2006). They warn the
tendency of making sourcing decisions “based on comparative advantage and cost
differentials only, to the exclusion of image considerations” (Jaffe and Nebenzahl
2006).
1.2.1 Product Quality, Perceived Benefits, and Perceived
Risks
Cross-national studies of the perceptions of “Made in” images are important because
of their managerial implications for global and multinational companies. International marketers, marketing scholars, economists, and politicians understand that