ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the question of whether United States (US) multinationals should follow the moral rules of the US or the moral rules of the host countries. It argues that the ethics of the market provide some universal moral norms for the conduct of multinationals. The chapter shows that many of the traditional topics discussed under the rubric of the obligations of multinationals fall under standard issues of business ethics. Although economists and business persons assume that people are basically self-interested, they must also assume that persons involved in business transactions will honor their contracts. Immanuel Kant's point is implicitly recognized by the business community when corporate officials despair of the immoral practices of corporations and denounce executives engaging in shady practices as undermining the business enterprise itself. One can push Kant's analysis and contend that business practice generally requires the adoption of a minimum standard of justice.
