Multinational Corporations and Foreign Direct Investments in Romania. Effects on the Romanian Trade

This paper focuses on the study of transnational corporations and their business development through foreign direct investments made in other countries, mostly greenfield type countries. The objective of this paper is to determine the impact of these companies enlargement on the Romanian retail market, especially on the consumer goods market. Transnational companies have experienced a very dynamic economic growth, enjoying success at first in their country and then expanding to other countries. As independent players on the international market, multinational corporations are becoming more and more powerful every day. Most of these companies record annual sales of ten million dollars each. The most important aspect of business globalization is the interdependence between national economies. In this process, Foreign Direct Investments have an important role, given the fact that the internal resources are not enough to ensure the development and support of businesses hence the need to obtain external resources. Generally, FDI have a strong training effect both in the national and global economy, providing the replacement and modernization of techniques and technologies, increasing production and supply of goods, improving their quality and competitiveness, creating new jobs and growing the quality of life. Thus, each national economy is building its economic development strategy in which investments have a predominant role. Foreign Direct Investment is a major driver of globalization that characterizes the modern economy. Increasing of Foreign Direct Investment flows, accompanied by the increasing of the portfolio investments, highlights the major role played by transnational corporations, especially in developing economies and transition economies. The most important areas in which FDI was made in Romania are: financial intermediation and insurance, trade, construction and real estate, information technology and communication. The entering of retail networks on the Romanian market generated mutations in the forms of trade, causing modern trade, which by 2010 reached a market share of 50% of total trade.