In This Review
Multinationals in Latin America: The Politics of Nationalization

Multinationals in Latin America: The Politics of Nationalization

By Paul E. Sigmund

University of Wisconsin Press (a Twentieth Century Fund Study), 1980, 426 pp.

Arguing that a new equilibrium has developed in Latin America between governments and multinationals, the author describes "a growing recognition that nationalization may not be the simple remedy for underdeveloped nations that some have claimed it to be-that, particularly when nationalization takes a confrontational form, its economic costs may considerably outweigh its potential benefits." The text concentrates on the nationalization experience in Cuba, Chile, Peru and Venezuela. Two integrating chapters on alternatives, foreign investment, and U.S. policy are helpful. A significant work.