Transnational Corporate Strategies in the ASEAN Region

by Hafiz Mirza (Editor)

This book assesses the strategies of transnational corporations toward the Asian financial crisis and investigates their reactions to the Association of South East Asian Nations new regional policies as well as their contribution to the region’s long term prospects. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Transnational Corporations (TNCs) have played an integral role in the industrial development and economic growth of the countries within ASEAN. However, the Asian financial crisis which started in 1997 has resulted both in a sharp decline in FDI and in uncertainties about the future role of TNCs in the region. The authors argue that the precipitants of the crisis, namely, a bubble economy in the financial and property market sectors and a fundamental imbalance in the development of the manufacturing sector, have led to a change of approach to growth within ASEAN. Its new orientation puts a greater stress on the domestic and regional markets, the elimination of bottlenecks and the upgrading of the technological and entrepreneurial capabilities of ASEAN firms. This book assesses the likely impact of these new emphases in policy, especially the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and the ASEAN Investment Area (AIA), in attracting FDI and diffusing TNC activity across the region. Finally, the authors address the role TNC’s can play in technology and business culture transfer to ASEAN companies and local employees. This timely book will be required reading for scholars of international economics, international business and Asian studies.

208 pages, Hardcover