This fascinating book examines international business and multinational enterprise as part of a bigger picture, considering the importance of two main components: space and time. Summarising the past five years, Mark Casson reviews the changing role of multinational enterprises within the global economy and how leading firms have generated profitability and growth not only from innovations in technology and marketing, but also by exploiting legal loopholes in tax and regulatory systems. This book examines the evolution of international business activity since the Middle Ages and analyses current trends within this long-term perspective. By seeking out low-cost sources of labour, international businesses have stimulated growth in developing countries but created industrial wastelands in mature economies. Global Business proposes an integrated social scientific approach to analysing the economic, social and political consequences of these continuing trends in the international business system. With a wide-ranging review of the latest thinking in the field, this book identifies promising research avenues and agendas for the future and will be an invaluable resource for students and scholars of business management and economic finance. Its practical guidance will also benefit policymakers and practitioners with a focus on business development.