Publications
Publications
- 2023
- HBS Working Paper Series
Point Four and the Politics of Foreign Direct Investment in the United States during the Early Cold War
By: Melanie Sheehan
Abstract
This article traces business influence in the formulation of the Point Four technical assistance program, the first US Cold War-era international development program. It focuses specifically on business interest associations’ efforts to secure federal incentives to promote foreign direct investment (FDI) in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. Business leaders and their government allies described FDI as the most effective means to promote international development, support European recovery, and encourage strategic minerals production after the Marshall Plan. Ultimately, business interest associations secured tax advantages and government-backed insurance for foreign investments because such measures served the interests of the US government in the context of European balance of payments deficits and the Korean War. Intent on promoting international development as a Cold War strategy, the Truman administration and Congress preferred private means to large-scale foreign aid appropriations. Business power thus stemmed from government leaders’ appraisal of the ways in which private business could fulfill state objectives.
Keywords
Point Four Program; Business Interest Association; International Development; Cold War; Foreign Direct Investment; Business History; Business and Government Relations
Citation
Sheehan, Melanie. "Point Four and the Politics of Foreign Direct Investment in the United States during the Early Cold War." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 23-078, June 2023.