Some of the most important developments of the last quarter century relate to the internationalization of financial issues: the advent of free trade areas; the efforts of the European Union in establishing a single currency; burdens of international indebtedness; and the economic growth and development of nations. International financial systems are increasingly fragile and vulnerable in the face of possible international financial shock. Exchange rate issues and other changes in financial conditions have profound consequences not only for multinational corporations which have to devise new ways of managing their global operations, but also for firms and industries at the national level. The papers in this book confront these and other problems in international finance that have arisen in recent years, seeking to identify causal linkages at the global, national and company levels.