Corporate Strategies For South East Asia After The Crisis: A Comparison Of Multinational Firms From Japan And Europe

Multinational companies have played a major role in shaping economic development in Southeast Asia. While financial and portfolio investors abandoned the region, investors from Europe and Japan have demonstrated confidence in the future of Southeast Asia as a production base for exports and a growing market for products, remaining in the region even after 1997. In production, they used the crisis to rationalize their operations. In marketing, they adapted to the specific needs of Southeast Asian consumers. To understand the region's future, one must understand how the Asian economic crisis affected these companies, how they have responded since and how they will respond in the future.