Chinese enterprises are making high profile forays into foreign markets. While these firms’ motivations are explained by traditional theories of multinational enterprises, this column identifies notable characteristics of many Chinese companies that make them distinct. China’s cultural context, market structures, and resources may necessitate changing our thinking about multinational enterprises’ strategies and motives.

Multinational enterprises’ foreign labour practices frequently come under fire. This column presents new evidence on how foreign takeovers affect workers’ wages and non-wage working conditions. The results suggest foreign investment is worth encouraging.