I don't about the other industries, but sorry not in steel. The top five
companies in the world (by crude steel output) control 13.5% of the total
world output. In fact this is one industry where there has been
deconcentration, here and abroad, and globally.
Anthony P. D'Costa
Associate Professor
Comparative International Development
University of Washington
1103 A Street
Tacoma, WA 98402, USA
Ph: (206) 552-4462
FAX: (206) 552-4414
On Fri, 11 Oct 1996, Fikret Ceyhun wrote:
> Doug said:
> >
> >How do we know there's been a sharper concentration? Thirty years ago,
> >there were three major players in the U.S. auto market; now there are what,
> >5 or 10?
> >
> >I sat at a conference a few weeks ago and listened to someone denouncing
> >the increased monopolization of world trade by 40,000 multinational
> >corporations. 40,000? Even allowing for 100 industrial sectors, we're
> >talking 400 per. Do a Herfindahl on that one!
> >
> >Another question - did the textbook world of perfect competition ever
> >really exist? Or has something like oligpolistic competition been the only
> >real historically existing kind?
> >
> >Doug
> >
>
> In an article, "The Limits of the Earth," by David Korten in "The
> Nation" (July 15/22, 1996) domestic as well as international concentration
> is heavy and increasing.He says, "five companies now control more than 50
> percent of the global market in the following industries: consumer
> durables, automotive, airlines, aerospace, electronic
> components,electricity and electronics, and steel. Five corporations
> control more than 40 percent of the global market in oil, personal
> computers and--especially alarming in its consequences for public debate on
> these very issues--media."
>
> There are other interesting statistics cited by the article, which
> questions the achievement of the Bretton Woods system that launched
> "globalization" with dire consequences. The article says: "The Fortune 500
> firms shed 4.4 million jobs between 1980 and 1993, but during this same
> period, their sales increased 1.4 times, assets increased 2.3 times and CEO
> compensation increased 6.1 times. . . . Those same corporations employ
> 1/20th of 1 percent of the world's population, but control 25 percent of
> the world's output and 70 percent of world trade."
>
> It seems to me we should not just look at how many (like 40,000)
> MNCs there are, but control of the few. I have seen statistics somewhere
> else where 1,000 MNCs control the bulk of the world,'s output, trade and
> investment.So the remaining 39,000 contribute very little to total sales.
>
> Fikret.
>
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> +Dept. of Economics (701)772-5135 home +
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