Key Drivers and Obstacles of Cross-Border M&A in the Automobile Industry After the Financial Crisis

The automotive industry performance has a significant impact on socio-economic environment. Due to the wide spread of international financial crisis, the plenty of prominent European and American carmakers have faced operational difficulties and were on the brink of bankruptcy. The current economic situation created favorable conditions for companies from emerging markets. As a result, these companies has driven an M&A cross-border activity. The main goal of such deals was the acquisition of key technologies from strong brands and expansion to developed countries. A case in point is the acquisition of Jaguar Land Rover by the Indian Tata Motors in 2008 and the later acquisition of Volvo Cars by the Chinese Geely Automobile in 2010. As a consequence, the problem of factors influencing the M&A’s outcome became crucial. In fact, the last statistical data regarding the success rate for M&A calls for the need to explore integration strategies. The previous research on critical factors of M&A success have left several questions unanswered. The issue of effective integration strategies as well as the role of cultural differences in the M&A process call for the need of further examination. In our study, we extend this line of research by analyzing the key drivers and obstacles specific to cross-border M&As in the automobile industry after the financial crisis.