Overview

This book offers a framework for analyzing the increased economic integration of countries which is mainly driven by multinational enterprises. They compete with other companies from different countries on many markets and through various channels. The book starts by discussing the stylized facts of the role of multinational enterprises in the globalization process in order to derive an empirical picture which is met as closely as possible by the theoretical framework. This theoretical framework which stands in the tradition of the proximity-concentration literature allows analyzing the effects of the globalization process on market structures, trade patterns, and welfare. The analysis shows that globalization induces various changes that imply much more chances than risks.