Empresas transnacionais e investimento direto estrangeiro: um survey das principais abordagens

Although traditional approaches discussing FDI have described it simply as a set-up up of productive units in foreign markets, the global shape of modern corporations has become a challenge for most analyse about this important aspect of international economic relations. The discussion carried out in the paper highlights the internationalization strategies of big companies through the acquisitions of unique assets, able to create ownership advantages, such as economies of scale, knowledge, systems of distribution and product diversification. Hence, firms expand internationally based on capital concentration and market share achieved domestically. By adopting this strategy, firms aim at sustaining their previous positions and raising their profit to a higher level. Furthermore, this process of expansion may occur by internalizing activities by means of FDI, or by transferring them to other companies.