An Australian company has two manufacturing plants, one in Australia and the other in a Southeast Asian country. Both produce the same product, each for sale in their respective countries. However, their labour productivity and capital productivity figures are quite different. The analyst thinks this is because the Australian plant uses more automated equipment for processing while the other plant uses a higher percentage of labour. In your own words, explain how the aforementioned factors can cause productivity figures to be misleading. Is there another way to compare the two plants that would be more meaningful?

International Financial Management
14th Edition
ISBN:9780357130698
Author:Madura
Publisher:Madura
Chapter16: Country Risk Analysis
Section: Chapter Questions
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An Australian company has two manufacturing plants, one in Australia and the other
in a Southeast Asian country. Both produce the same product, each for sale in their
respective countries. However, their labour productivity and capital productivity
figures are quite different. The analyst thinks this is because the Australian plant
uses more automated equipment for processing while the other plant uses a higher
percentage of labour.
In your own words, explain how the aforementioned factors can cause productivity
figures to be misleading. Is there another way to compare the two plants that would
be more meaningful?
Transcribed Image Text:An Australian company has two manufacturing plants, one in Australia and the other in a Southeast Asian country. Both produce the same product, each for sale in their respective countries. However, their labour productivity and capital productivity figures are quite different. The analyst thinks this is because the Australian plant uses more automated equipment for processing while the other plant uses a higher percentage of labour. In your own words, explain how the aforementioned factors can cause productivity figures to be misleading. Is there another way to compare the two plants that would be more meaningful?
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