Why Australia Isn’t Very Good at Doing Business Overseas
- Biggest Australian companies fail to replicate success abroad
- Culture, remoteness among factors working against businesses
A shopper walks through the aisles of a Wesfarmers Ltd. Bunnings Warehouse store in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday, July 28, 2011.
Photographer: Ian Waldie/Bloomberg
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For a nation of just 25 million people, Australia punches above its weight in sport, science and medicine. But when it comes to success overseas, many of the country’s biggest companies are falling short.
From QBE Insurance Group Ltd. to National Australia Bank Ltd., corporate Australia has burnt through at least A$6.1 billion ($4.7 billion) in offshore losses and writedowns in less than two years. In the U.K., Wesfarmers Ltd. is reviewing the future of its unprofitable Bunnings home-improvements business after wiping A$1 billion from the unit’s value in February.