CLASSIFICATION OF RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH ENTERPRISES’ FOREIGN ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES

Abstract

Introduction. In the current context of international business development, enterprises’ foreign economic activities are characterized by significant uncertainty and dependence on a wide range of internal and external factors. The risks associated with foreign economic activity are shaped by changes in the international market environment, currency fluctuations, political instability, the transformation of global supply chains, the digitalization of business processes, and the tightening of international regulatory requirements. In such conditions, the classification of risks in enterprises’ foreign economic activity becomes of paramount importance, as it is precisely the systematization of risks that provides the basis for their comprehensive analysis and the development of effective approaches to managing risk situations in international business. At the same time, current changes in the international environment necessitate a review of traditional risk classification approaches and the introduction of new classification criteria.

Purpose. The objective of this study is to summarize and develop academic approaches to the classification of risks associated with enterprises’ foreign economic activity, taking into account the current conditions of the international business environment, with a view to systematizing classification criteria and identifying contemporary types of risks in the foreign economic activity of business entities.

Materials and methods. The research materials include: 1) works by domestic and foreign scholars devoted to the issue of classifying risks in the foreign economic activity of enterprises; 2) scientific publications examining contemporary trends in the development of the international business environment and the transformation of risks in foreign economic activity under the influence of a range of parameters.

In the course of our research, we employed the following scientific methods: theoretical generalization and grouping (to examine the nature of risks associated with enterprises’ foreign economic activity and to systematize the classification criteria for such risks); analysis and synthesis (to identify specific types of risks in foreign economic activity and to determine the characteristics of their manifestation); structural-logical analysis (to construct a generalized classification of risks in enterprises’ foreign economic activity); comparison (to contrast existing scientific approaches to risk classification); and logical generalization of results (to formulate the study’s conclusions).

Results. In this research article, we have summarized contemporary academic approaches to the classification of risks associated with enterprises’ foreign economic activities and systematically outlined the key classification criteria for such risks. We have identified the characteristics of internal and external risks, as well as those that differ in terms of predictability, manageability, scale of impact, and nature of manifestation. We have proposed approaches to classifying the risks of foreign economic activity, taking into account current trends in international business, including digitalization, the tightening of international regulatory requirements, the growing role of information security, and the transformation of global supply chains. We paid particular attention to identifying risks related to information uncertainty, cyber risks, digital platform risks, compliance risks, sanctions risks, and cascading risks.

The results of the study show that the risks associated with foreign economic activity are increasingly less likely to be isolated and are more frequently manifested as interconnected risk scenarios. The classification of risks in foreign economic activity that we propose provides a basis for a more comprehensive analysis and for improving risk management approaches in international business.

Discussion. In future research, we propose focusing on developing methodological approaches to assess the risks associated with enterprises’ foreign economic activities, analyzing the mechanisms of interaction among different types of risk, and improving risk management systems in the context of the digitalization of international business and increasing global instability. Such steps will enhance the effectiveness of enterprises’ foreign economic activities and their ability to adapt to the contemporary challenges of the international business environment.