[PEN-L:4313] US, Japanese, German foreign investment

[Barbara Laurence <cns@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Dennis, I meant US and Japan investments in Germany. You're right,
interlocks between German and French and other European capital are
extensive. Which is one reason why there's a euro (by the way, a German
Marxist scholar visited yesterday, and he said that the euro was all about
defeating the welfare state and the unions). I was careful to say "new,
real investments." Meaning in the margin.


Doug, I don't think your data distinguish between foreign direct investment
that are merely M and A's, contrasted with the FDI that consist of the
construction or addition or modification of real productive capacity. I'm
speaking of the latter. I see the former mainly as a financial, property
transfer transaction that may be motivated my many
things..........Doubtless the big "capital imports" into the US in the late
1980's pertained to a/ the much cheaper dollar after 1985; thus cheap US
productive capacity and b/ Japan's surplus, when Japan was buying up
anything they could get their hands on during the Great Bubble after 1985,
most of which is now sold off. Again, as noted in my first posting, we have
"economic" changes at root due to the politics of the US/ Japan, a strange
politics indeed.

Doug, do you know if there are any figures on real FDI (new buildings, new
equipment, new business services, etc.) vs acquisitions only? Thanks for
any help. Thanks also for the new LBO; I learned a few things and more can
you say?

Jim O'Connor