The first history of the involvement of American business in direct foreign investment explores a number of pertinent questions: What was the genesis of U.S. business interests in overseas markets? What perspectives guided the financial and social policies of the pioneering companies? In what...

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Tables and Figures -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Abbreviations -- 1. The First World War, 1914–1918 -- 2. America’s New Role, 1919–1923 -- 3. Survival, Expansion, and New Arrivals, 1919–1923 -- 4. Prosperity, 1924–1929 -- 5. The Foreign Multinationals,...

The term FDI is often used loosely. This Perspective explains the historical genesis of that loose use and the relationship between FDI and MNEs. FDI stock is one of many measures of MNE activities, but has advantage over the others, since we have long, albeit imperfect, series on FDI stock....