With regard to market expansion, the record is mixed: in some sectors where public enterprises were starved for funds, like telecommunications, the new foreign owners may have expanded the number of users and enlarged the market. In other cases, like water, electricity and transportation, the new foreign owners have reduced the market, especially to low-income classes, by raising charges beyond the means of most consumers.
The experience with foreign invesment and technological transfers is largely negative: over 80% of research and development is carried out in the main office. The "transfers of technology" is the rental of sale of techniques developed elsewhere, rather than local design. The multinationals usually charge subsidiaries excess royalty fees, service and management costs, to artificially or fraudulently lower profits and taxes to local governments.
Myth #2 Foreign invesement increases the export competitiveness of an industry, and stimulates the local economy via secondary and tertiary purchases and sales.
In reality foreign investors buy up lucrative mineral resources and export them with little or no value added. Most of the minerals are converted into semi-finished or finished value added goods - processed, refined, manufactured - in home countries or elsewhere, creating jobs, diversified economies and skills. The privatization of the lucrative giant iron mine Vale del Doce in Brazil in the 1990's has led to huge profits for the new owners and the sale of raw ore overseas, particularly to China in the 21st century. China converts iron ore to steel for transport, machine industries and a host of job-generating metallurgical enterprises. In Bolivia, the privatization of the gas and petrol industry in the mid 1990's has led to billions in profits in the 21st century and the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs in processing and conversion of petroleum and gas into value added goods, plus failure to supply local low-income consumers. The extraction of raw materials is capital intensive using few workers. Processing and manufacture is more labor intensive and job creating.
http://www.counterpunch.org/petras07022005.html
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Six Myths About The Benefits Of Foreign Ownership
Posted on Tuesday, July 05 at 10:47 by Ed DeakContributed By
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<a href="http://porkupineblog.blogspot.com/">http://porkupineblog.blogspot.com/</a><br />
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Dave Ruston
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If I stand for my country today...will my country be here to stand for me tomorrow?
I'm NDP for practical reasons, but have to say that I like the CAP's economic policies more. After many years I still don't know where the NDP stands on the NAFTA ? Ed Deak, Big Lake, BC.
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HAPPY CANADA DAY TO ALL <br />
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EAT YOUR HEART OUT WORLD....... <br />
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SO, WHAT DO CANADIANS HAVE TO BE PROUD OF? <br />
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1. Smarties <br />
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2. Crispy Crunch, Coffee Crisp <br />
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3. The size of our footballs fields and one less down <br />
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4. Baseball is Canadian <br />
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5. Lacrosse is Canadian <br />
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6. Hockey is Canadian <br />
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7. Basketball is Canadian <br />
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8. Apple pie is Canadian <br />
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9. Mr. Dress-up kicks Mr. Rogers ass <br />
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10. Tim Hortons kicks Krispy Kreme's ass <br />
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11. In the war of 1812, started by America, Canadians pushed the Americans back...past their 'White House'. Then we burned it...and most of Washington, under the command of William Lyon MaKenzie King who was insane and hammered all the time. We got bored because they ran away, so we came home and partied...Go figure.. <br />
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12. Canada has the largest French population that never surrendered to Germany. <br />
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13. We have the largest English population that never ever surrendered or withdrew during any war to anyone. anywhere. EVER. <br />
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14. Our civil war was fought in a bar and it lasted a little over an hour. <br />
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15. The only person who was arrested in our civil war was an American mercenary, who slept in and missed the whole thing... but showed up just in time to get caught. <br />
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16. We knew plaid was cool far before Seattle caught on. <br />
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17. The Hudsons Bay Company once owned over 10% of the earth's surface and is still around as the worlds oldest company. <br />
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18. The average dog sled team can kill and devour a full grown human in under 3 minutes. <br />
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19. We still know what to do with all the parts of a buffalo. <br />
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20. We don't marry our kin-folk. <br />
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21. We invented ski-doos, jet-skis, velcro, zippers, insulin, penicillin, zambonis, the telephone and short wave radios that save countless lives each year. <br />
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22. We ALL have frozen our tongues to something metal and lived to tell about it. <br />
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23. A Canadian invented Superman. <br />
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24. We have coloured money. <br />
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25. Our beer advertisments kick ass <br />
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BUT MOST IMPORTANT! <br />
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24. The handles on our beer cases are big enough to fit your hands with mitts on. OOOoohhhhh Canada!! <br />
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25. And we don't bomb our allies. <br />
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oh yeah... and our elections only take one day. <br />
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Pass this on if you are proud to be Canadian<br />
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This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from <a href="http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm">http://www.papercut.biz/emailStripper.htm</a><p>---<br>Always be tolerant with those who disagree with you. After all, they have a perfect right to their ridiculous opinions-<br />
unknown<br />
The more laws that are written