Show The Tho Voice of Business Lets Let's s import some jobs By ny li II h Leslier President of or the Chamber of or Commerce of or the Untied United States Slates Some people believe American Jobs are arc l lost t exported exported ex exported ported when an American company builds a factory abroad Its It's easy to see why a person would jump to that conclusion although the record doesn't support it In fact the U U. S. S companies that have expanded most overseas also tend to be those that have expanded employment significantly here as well But it is true that when an American company starts a branch in a foreign country new jobs are created in that country And it is also true that thata a foreign company can create jobs here in the same way Since we need more jobs to offer the unemployed you would think foreign investors would be 00 bewelcome welcome here However the Idea of foreigners owning American businesses makes some people nervous THESE FEARS are not new Back in 1791 we were worrying about the same issue Th The first Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton told Congress in that year Rather than be judged a rival it foreign investment ought to tobe tobe tobe be considered an auxiliary all the more precious because it alone permits an increased amount of productive labor and useful enterprise to be set to work Its It's a good thing Congress listened to Hamilton America was built largely with other peoples people's money We were a net importer of capital that is foreign investment in the U. U S S. S was greater than U. U S S. S Investment investment investment in In- vestment overseas until the First World War w when en Europe began to cash in its overseas holdings to finance the conflict BUT RUT TIMES changed Most Americans alive today were born and have spent their lives in an era when new new direct foreign investment here was almost And the few remaining old-line old foreign- foreign owned companies have become that that- think that that of them as as s American Now the the pattern is changing again Foreign investment in inthe inthe inthe the U. U S. S is picking up and so consequently is the controversy controversy controversy con con- over it Why would anybody fear foreign investment Usually three arguments are made against it 1 l. Foreigners might buy up an entire vital U U. U S. S industry such as food production and use their control to blackmail us Theres There's a lot wrong with this theory First no foreign country is likely to have enough money to buy a a major U. U S S. S industry were we're too big Second such concentrations of ownership are forbidden by U.S. U. U U.S. S S. S law which applies to all companies operating in the U U.S. U.S. U. U S. S no matter what their ownership Third in in especially sensitive industries such as communications there are legal limits on foreign in in- vestment 2 Foreigners might gain control of our defense suppliers This too loo is regulated closely by the U. U S. S government 3 3 Foreigners might steal U U. S S. S technology Foreigners are more likely to buy U U. S S. S technology technology- and pay well vell for it too But it works two ways We no longer have a technological lead over the rest rat of the world in everything In some cases foreign owners owner's would actually be introducing valuable new technology into the U S SITS SITS SIT'S S. S ITS IT'S IMPORTANT 11 to keep Total tota things In perspective term long U. U S. S Investment nt abroad at t the end of or 1973 was billion total foreign Investment Investment In In- vestment in n the U. U S S. S at that time was 55 billion If we put ul unfairly harsh restrictions on foreign investors In our markets other countries would retaliate against our Investments on their shores and we have more to lose from that kind of contest than all the rest of the world put together Besides we need the jobs |