This book is a detailed account of the evolution and theory of multinational trading companies. The book features contributions from an international selection of US, European and Asian economists and business historians which demonstrate the importance of trading companies in trade and investment flows in the world economy from the nineteenth century to the present. The authors adopt evolutionary and comparative perspectives to examine diversification strategies and organizational structures.
This innovative study provides a major new dimension to our knowledge of the history and theory of international business.
Biography
Geoffrey Jones
'...a marvellous overview of the history of firms engaged in world trade. There is a precise chronological and geographical survey...and the chapter offers global conclusions about the competence, permanent reshaping of activities and the diversification strategies of firms.' Hubert Bonin, Bordeaux Political Science Institute