Final answer:
In international business finance, AR is generally better for long positions as it indicates future cash inflows to the company, while managing AP can aid short-term liquidity but increase liabilities over time.
Step-by-step explanation:
In international business finance, considering whether accounts payable (AP) or accounts receivable (AR) is better for long and short positions depends on the context of the question. AP represents money owed by a company to its suppliers or creditors and is a liability, while AR represents money that customers owe to the company and is an asset. For a long position, having high AR means the company expects to receive a lot of cash in the future, which is beneficial. On the other hand, for a short position, having high AP could be favorable since the company maintains cash liquidity by delaying outflows; however, this strategy increases liabilities and is not sustainable in the long term.