Skip to Main Content
HBS Home
  • About
  • Academic Programs
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Research
  • Baker Library
  • Giving
  • Harvard Business Review
  • Initiatives
  • News
  • Recruit
  • Map / Directions
Faculty & Research
  • Faculty
  • Research
  • Featured Topics
  • Academic Units
  • …→
  • Harvard Business School→
  • Faculty & Research→
Publications
Publications
  • Article
  • Business History Review

U.S. Multinationals in British Manufacturing before 1962

By: G. Jones and Frances Bostock
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:50 
ShareBar

Abstract

This article presents a new database on U.S. multinationals active in British manufacturing between 1907 and 1962. Britain was the largest European host economy for U.S. direct investment in manufacturing and the second largest host worldwide. This article identifies the industrial distribution and mode of entry of U.S. investors, and offers explanations for the time trends which are shown. It goes on to trace the evolution of U.S. subsidiaries, and shows that rates of divestment were substantial. An examination of the characteristics of U.S. subsidiaries, including the substantial investments in R&D and high export propensity, is followed by a survey of British public policy, which made Britain an attractive host but did little to shape the form of U.S. investment.

Keywords

Production; Trade; Foreign Direct Investment; Research And Development; Business Subsidiaries; Policy; Investment; Manufacturing Industry; United States; Great Britain

Citation

Jones, G., and Frances Bostock. "U.S. Multinationals in British Manufacturing before 1962." Business History Review 70, no. 2 (Summer 1996): 207–256.
  • Find it at Harvard

About The Author

Geoffrey G. Jones

General Management
→More Publications

More from the Authors

    • 2021
    • Faculty Research

    International Business History and the Strategy of Multinational Enterprises: How History Matters

    By: Geoffrey Jones and Teresa da Silva Lopes
    • 2021
    • Faculty Research

    Bollywood, Skin Color and Sexism: The Role of the Film Industry in Emboldening and Contesting Stereotypes in India after Independence

    By: Sudev Sheth, Geoffrey Jones and Morgan Spencer
    • December 2020
    • Faculty Research

    George Soros: The Stateless Statesman

    By: Geoffrey Jones and Grace Ballor
More from the Authors
  • International Business History and the Strategy of Multinational Enterprises: How History Matters By: Geoffrey Jones and Teresa da Silva Lopes
  • Bollywood, Skin Color and Sexism: The Role of the Film Industry in Emboldening and Contesting Stereotypes in India after Independence By: Sudev Sheth, Geoffrey Jones and Morgan Spencer
  • George Soros: The Stateless Statesman By: Geoffrey Jones and Grace Ballor
ǁ
Campus Map
Harvard Business School
Soldiers Field
Boston, MA 02163
→Map & Directions
→More Contact Information
  • Make a Gift
  • Site Map
  • Jobs
  • Harvard University
  • Trademarks
  • Policies
  • Digital Accessibility
Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College