Abstract:

Professional markets with unique Chinese characteristics have strong positive externalities, some of which become important forces to promote the internationalization of a host city's economy and the mutual promotion of domestic and international cycles. The drivers of the internationalization of professional markets can be broadly divided into external factors such as the openness of the host city, institutional environment, and government governance efficiency, and internal factors such as the conditions of market trading facilities, the level of trading technology, and the education level of market personnel. This study adopted the fsQCA method to analyze the multiple paths used by 74 professional markets to achieve international expansion by combining complex antecedent conditions. The results identify four feasible paths for three types of professional markets—internal-driven, internal and external-driven, and external-driven—which can be used as a reference for professional markets in different regions and local governments.

Key words: professional markets, internationalization path, fsQCA, transaction efficiency