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ABSTRACT The effect of globalization on national economic and political strategies is a central theme in policy analysis. At the core of this debate is business governance, interpreted in this paper in a wide sense as the laws, rules, and routines that govern large-scale corporations. Conventional wisdom has it that cross-national patterns of business governance are converging on the so-called Anglo-Saxon, capital-market driven model. In this paper I analyze recent changes in Brazil and South Africa, to conclude that models of business governance should be seen jointly with the institutional underpinnings of the economy. These include legal traditions that are unlikely to undergo rapid changes, other institutional features directly related to the ways in which first compete in the global economy, and the mechanisms through which social actors resist changes adverse to their interests.

The effect of globalization on national economic and political strategies is a central theme in policy analysis. At the core of this debate is business governance, interpreted in this paper in a wide sense as the laws, rules, and routines that govern largescale corporations. This paper analyzes recent changes in Brazil and South Africa, to conclude that models of business governance should be seen jointly with the institutional underpinnings of the economy. These include legal traditions that are unlikely to undergo rapid changes, other institutional features directly related to the ways in which firms compete in the global economy, and the mechanisms through which social actors resist changes adverse to their interests. (Rev Econ Polit/DÜI)

This paper analyzes the evolution of corporate governance and regulation in privatized telecommunication companies in the four largest EU economies. A political-economy approach is used to test the validity of the convergence hypothesis, which posits that globalization should produce convergence in business practices, ownership patterns, and regulatory frameworks. While there are signs that the structure of ownership and monitoring in continental Europe is adopting some of the features of the Anglo-Saxon arms-length governance system, corporate decisions remain shaped by durable national institutions and distinctive political traditions regarding the role of the corporation in society, the "just" level of executive remuneration, the concept of universal service, and the involvement of the state in corporate restructuring.

Since the outset of the Real Plan, Brazil has made considerable progress in economic stabilisation, although privatisation has so far been incomplete. This study aims at answering a number of questions emerging from the Brazilian privatisation experience. To what extent have sell-offs been influenced by Brazil's legal and institutional framework and by its political context? How are authorities coping with the issues regarding ownership patterns and market structures? And, taking into account the key role that "state capitalism" has played in the country's development, what model of corporate organisation is emerging? The first section describes the history and the role of the Brazilian public enterprise sector. The second section sets out the policy, legal and operational framework in which privatisations were implemented, compares its features with those prevailing in other countries, and provides an updated account of state sell-offs. The following two sections analyse the consequences in terms of corporate governance and regulatory reform.

This comprehensive study of the rise of multinational corporations from emerging economies explores the basis of their success. Andrea Goldstein argues that the history of multinational business offers valuable lessons for the present and shows how emerging multinationals are embedded in dense political, social and ethnic networks

When the OECD Development Centre launched research in 2005 to document the economic, political and social impacts of China's and India's economic growth on sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries, the arrival (or resurgence) of new important players had triggered concerns among traditional donors. Accusations ran from free riding on Western debt relief over violation of governance standards and unfair company competition to fragmentation of aid delivery. At the same time, there was a tendency to neglect the diversity of SSA in terms of resource endowments, trade links and industrial development. It was time then to promote African voices from various backgrounds to reflect Africa's heterogeneity. The introductory section presents a summary of findings about the economic impact of the two Asian giants in SSA countries by Africa-based economists, with three practical conclusions. First, African countries should favour strategies that minimise areas of direct competition with the Asian giants. Second, industrialisation strategies are required to exploit opportunities complementary to the Asian development path. Third, sectors of mutual interest should be identified in order to develop long-term views on how to cooperate with China and India and these views should be mainstreamed into national development plans.