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It is important to note that, much, if not all, of the literature treating the ‘born global’ phenomenon has thus far focused on the activities undertaken by such firms in developed markets, particularly within new industries and high-technology-based sectors. The eclectic approach Dissatisfied with the fragmentation of previous explanations of FDI, Dunning’s search (1977, 1979, 1981, 1988a, 1988b, 1998) for a generalized framework capable of integrating the existing hypotheses resulted in the eclectic theory, later renamed ‘paradigm’, of international production.

The MNCs have developed a ‘culture’ of their own 12 Introduction which enables them to function freely in an environment of varying national cultures. Consumption patterns are also acquiring increasing uniformity and as a consequence of the cross-border mobility of investable funds, the world is fast becoming a ‘global village’. Chapter 12 highlights the cultural differences between emerging and developed markets overseas and the extent to which cultural differences impact on market selection for siting an investment and negotiating it, locating investment partners, managing an investment and withdrawal from an investment activity.

Among these, the lack of infrastructure, inadequate openness of economy, aggressive marketing in exports and FIIS’, permission to invest seem most important. Chapter 11 on Mexico makes a very interesting study of a poor economy sitting next to a very prosperous and highly developed one, but failing to take advantage of its proximity to so much surplus investible wealth. For decades, Mexico feared exploitation of its natural resources by its powerful neighbour but when opened its economy the reality turned out to be not that bleak.