Multinational enterprise and government controls on outward foreign direct investment in the US and UK in the 1960's

Rollings, N. (2011) Multinational enterprise and government controls on outward foreign direct investment in the US and UK in the 1960's. Enterprise and Society, 12(2), pp. 398-434. (doi: 10.1093/es/khq126)

Abstract

The 1960s have been seen as critical in the development of multinational enterprise by social scientists. Business historians have provided a context to these developments but are only now beginning to consider the 1960s in the light of access to archival material. This article analyses the nature and extent of the tension between multinational enterprise and U.S. and U.K. national governments in the 1960s caused by the tightening of controls on FDI introduced to resolve balance of payments problems. A comparative approach is adopted to illustrate that these tensions were not restricted to the US. The tension revolved around different conceptions of business investment decision-making and of the contribution of multinationals to the national economy. It is also suggested that the impact of these measures was at the micro-level and this highlights the value of business history approaches.

• Item Type: Articles
• Additional Information: This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced PDF of an article accepted for publication in Enterprise and Society following peer review. The definitive publisher-authenticated version Rollings, N. (2011) Multinational enterprise and government controls on outward foreign direct investment in the US and UK in the 1960's. Enterprise and Society, 12 (2). pp. 398-434 is available online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/es/khq126.
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Rollings, Professor Neil
• Authors: Rollings, N.
• Subjects: D History General and Old World > D History (General) > D901 Europe (General); H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor; J Political Science > JN Political institutions (Europe)
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Social and Political Sciences > Economic and Social History
• Journal Name: Enterprise and Society
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• ISSN: 1467-2227
• ISSN (Online): 1467-2235
• Published Online: 10 December 2010
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2010 Oxford University Press
• First Published: First published in Enterprise and Society 12(2):398-434
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher