ABSTRACT
Throughout the twentieth century there have been critics of the ‘capitalist system’ (or lack of system). The news of the imminent death of capitalism has been greatly exaggerated. The role of large companies in the
‘Monopoly’ anticipated by Herbert Cole. From the magazine Fun
geography of the world’s major regions will be discussed in later chapters. Progress in privatisation in Central Europe and the former USSR will be referred to in
Chapter 6. The bastions of state socialism are falling as new transnational companies are formed in countries formerly run by state planners. It is difficult to see how in a few years Russia could create a sophisticated structure of large companies similar to that in the western world, whatever path it follows towards a market economy and private
ownership. Nevertheless, according to Naudin (1994), in mid-1994 the private sector already accounted for half of Russia’s GDP.
