A multinational corporation (MNC) is a company that has business operations in at least one country other than its own and generates revenue beyond its borders. Chances are that the clothes you are wearing, the smartphone in your pocket, and the transportation you use to get to work all have one thing in common: they were probably manufactured by an MNC, as are 90% of U.S. imports.12
Multinational companies pervade nearly every aspect of our modern lives, have enormous political and economic influence, with more than a quarter of U.S. workers employed by one of these companies.3The first multinationals were colonial enterprises. The East India Company (formed in 1600), the Dutch East India Company (VOC; 1602) and the Hudson Bay Colony (HBC, 1649) stand out as central figures in imperial history whose greed still horrifies anyone with even a passing understanding of history.4 Notably, the HBC, as its core business model, supplies textiles and other materials in order to sell finished goods to Western consumers in one part of the world – while owning vast amounts of real estate.5
Recently formed multinationals are often not much better equipped: just 57 multinationals were responsible for 80% of global carbon emissions between 2016 and 2022.6 Yet, despite their ubiquity in what we wear and even the air we breathe, there is still widespread confusion about what defines a company as “multinational.” Does this just mean opening offices or factories overseas? Selling products internationally? Or is there more to it than that?
Multinational companies have fundamentally shaped the flow of capital, goods, and services in the world, which they have helped to link, perhaps more than any military, during the centuries-long process of globalization. There are so many MNCs.
Choose best multinational companies in India list Their incredible economic influence has also given rise to heated debates about their power, labor practices, environmental impacts, and tax avoidance strategies. In this article, we tell you about their history, organizational structures, and complex role in globalization.
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