In the 70 years of the 20th century emerged and has since been actively discussed the phenomenon of corporations, international by nature of its activity, which is directly connected with the extensive development of direct foreign investment. On the international corporations that are typically the largest firms in developed countries account for the bulk of international direct investment and international trade.

The main feature of the international corporation is its implementation of international direct investment from their home country to the host country.

The home country (home country) - the country where the head unit is an international corporation.

The host country (host country) - the country in which the multinational corporation has subsidiaries, associates or affiliates that are based on direct investments.

International Corporation - a form of structural organization of a large corporation that has direct investments in different countries of the world.

International corporations are of two main types:

• Transnational corporations (TNCs) - their parent company owns a capital of the country and has offices spread across many countries of the world.

• Multinational corporations (MNCs) - their parent company owns the capital of two or more countries, and offices are also located in various countries.

As an example of such a company is usually given the Anglo-Dutch company "Royal Dutch Shell", in existence since 1907 modern capital of the company is divided in the ratio of 60:40. An example of a multinational corporation is well-known in Europe, the Swiss-Swedish company ABB (Asea Brown Bovery), specializing in the field of mechanical engineering, electronic engineering. ABB has several joint ventures in the countries of the CIS. The leading European MNC is the Anglo-Dutch company "Unilever", "Philips", etc.

From the point of view of international law hallmarks of multinational corporations are: 1) the presence of the multinational equity, and 2) the existence of a multi-ethnic senior center, and 3) acquisition of foreign subsidiaries administration staff, who know the local conditions. The latter, incidentally, is peculiar, and many multinationals. In general, the boundaries between these two groups of international companies are very mobile, a transition of one form into another.

The vast majority of today's multinational corporations are in the form of TNCs.

The most characteristic features of TNCs are:

• Establishing an international production, sprayed between many countries, but controlled from a single center;

• Intra-high intensity of trade between countries located in different departments;

• relative independence in decision-making on the operating of home and host countries;

• the global structure of employment and cross-country mobility managers;

• the development, transfer and application of advanced technologies in a closed korporatsionnoy structure.

The division of multinational corporations TNCs and MNCs very tentatively, as in the present conditions the most important is not that the capital of several corporations owned by the parent company, and the global nature of its operations, investment and profit. In this sense, one can assume that all international corporations with at least one foreign affiliate that is based on direct investments.

At the end of 2009, there were 82,000 world multinationals controlling 810 000 affiliated companies. Exports of goods and services to subsidiaries of one third of world exports. As of 2008, at TNK employed 77 million people. During the period from 2006 but in 2008 (average) 100 largest TNCs owned 9% of the world's foreign assets of TNK, 16% of the sales of the world's transnational corporations and 11% of total employment in the TNC.

Referring to the statistics of the magazine Fortune, annual rankings of the largest corporations in the world, taking as basis the criterion signs such as the size of the annual turnover of the company. 

The total size and dynamics of the process associated with the development of transnational corporations and the internationalization of production, can be judged by the following data. Today, multinational corporations control up to half of the industrial production in the world, two-thirds of international trade, about four fifths of patents and licenses for new techniques), technology and know-how.
 
Almost all trade in raw materials on world markets is under the control of the TNC, including 90% of world trade in wheat, coffee, corn, wood, tobacco, iron ore, 85% - copper, bauxite, 80% - tin, tea, 75% - natural rubber crude oil. TNK employing more than 70 million employees, ie every tenth busiest in the world, except for agriculture (in the company «DaimlerChrysler AG» employs about 467 thousand people, «General Motors» -398 thousand, «Ford Motor» -364,5 thousand, «Siemens» - 443 thousand . etc.).
 
On the top 500 TNCs account for over one third of export manufacturing sector, three quarters of world trade in commodities, four fifths sale of new technologies. Overall, 500 TNCs control 70% of world trade, and the 400 companies - half of all foreign direct investment. Total volume of accumulated foreign direct investment of 3.2 trillion dollars, while sales of foreign affiliates of TNCs to 6, $ 4 trillion, which is more than the entire world exports (6.1 trillion dollars)
 
Sales of foreign affiliates are growing at 20-30% faster than the direct export of TNCs. With regard to foreign direct investment TNCs, in recent years they have grown to 3 times faster than domestic investment, although they account for only 6% of the annual investment in promyshleiio developed countries.
 
From the above statistics it can be concluded that in view of rapidly increasing economic power of TNCs world, indeed, is the situation "centered" when the concentration of capital and political power is in the hands of the largest multinational corporations, effectively determining the development of the most important sectors of the world economy.
 
It is worth mentioning that from a position of economic and political superiority global corporations carry out the policy of "double standards" on the one hand, promoting the liberalization and democratization of the global economic space, and the other - in fact establishing themselves within the planned economy TNCs, thus exerting a dual effect on the national economy of countries included in the process of globalization