ABSTRACT
Corporations increasingly are becoming global institutions. They are adopting strategies which transcend the influence of the small and medium-size industrialized nations of the world. The largest 500 multinational corporations conduct over one-half of world trade. 1 Trade and, more importantly, investment barriers have been lowered dramatically by the NAFTA and the latest GATT agreement, thus strengthening further the bargaining position of highly mobile capital and the clout of global corporations. It is not surprising, therefore, that in this environment, global companies are becoming the principal actors driving the economic and social agendas of all countries. Canada provides a fascinating case study of the potential problems which many countries may shortly face if they fail to develop their national champions and fail to strengthen and broaden their industrial bases, relegating them to a junior role in relation to the global corporations.
