International Divestments: An Empirical Perspective

Abstract

Considering the flurry of international expansion over the last half century, it is perhaps inevitable that multinational enterprises have lately been finding the need to divest many of those foreign activities. Indeed, international divestment is a basic tool of every MNE's strategic business policy. Of all the various reasons to divest, the most salient seem to be to concentrate the scope of business and ameliorate poor financial results. As this study of Dutch MNEs points out, alternative or more attractive growth opportunities, the lack of a local competitive edge, copycatting, and an unfavorable political climate prove to be significantly less important motives