TheWrongGrammer:
First, your question is not regionally-based. There might be an MBA program here or there that deviates from the norm, but the admissions process for business schools is somewhat universal (geographically) especially with respect to the GMAT/GRE.
Second, the universities typically prefer the higher overall GMAT score. As you imply, the schools pay close attention to the breakdown of the score and don't just look at overall score blindly. They are wary of candidates who did really well in one subject but fall short in the other. FYI, that's why it's hard to get a very high GMAT score if you are only good in Q or V and weak in the other.
Since business in general tends to be quantitatively driven, if two candidates have the same GMAT score but one does much better in quant than the other, the schools tends to favor candidate with the higher quant score (all things in their profile held equal.)
We trust this information is insightful.
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