Definition – Public limited
companies which are so large
that they operate on an
international scale (operating in
more than one country)
Advantages
Employment is
created in the
‘host’ countries
Economies of scale can
be achieved – countries
producing on such a
large scale can spread
production costs over a
large output and so
prices can be reduced
Multinational companies can introduce new
management styles in the ‘host’ countries. These new
management styles can increase staff motivation, reduce
costs and help develop the business into a powerful
global market leader.
Disadvantages
In some cases, the jobs created in the ‘host’
country are low-skilled assembly jobs, with
the high-skilled research jobs being kept in
the country origin.
Profits earned in the ‘host’ country are usually
transferred back to shareholders in the country of
origin.
A multinational company
could make demands on
the government of its
‘host’ country and if
these requests are note
granted the company
could withdraw from the
country. This could cause
unemployment in the
areas of the ‘host’
country.
Objetives
To reduce production costs
To reduce transport costs
To penetrate markets
protected by import
controls
To take advantage of
host-government financial
assistance