Firm Size as a Determinant of Export Propensity: An Empirical Study of South Carolina Firms
Firm Size as a Determinant of Export Propensity: An Empirical Study of South Carolina Firms

Summary/Abstract: This paper evaluates the export propensity of micro firms in an empirical study in an effort to resolve the competing theories espoused by researchers with respect to exporting and firm size (e.g., Mittlelstaedt, Harben, and Ward, 2003; Wolff and Pett, 2000; and Pett and Wolff, 2003). We use a data set similar to that of Mittelstaedt, et al, (2003), but analyze our sample differently. Although we find that firm size has a significant impact on export propensity, we fail to find a threshold at twenty employees or at any other number of employees. Thus our findings fail to support those of Mittelstaedt, Harben, and Ward (2003), but do support Wolff and Pett’s (2000) arguments that small firms are fully capable of exporting. Our findings indicate that researchers have not yet fully understood the relationship between firm size and exporting behavior.

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