Beschreibung:
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title>
<jats:p>The article refers to recent research on multinational companies, which assumes a special importance of companies in the maritime economy (trade, shipyards, shipping companies) in globalisation processes. It examines the Thyssen-Bornemisza group, which emerged in 1926 from the August Thyssen group, and shows how its internationalization, which was already envisaged at the beginning of the 1920s, was implemented under the adverse conditions of the first half of the 20th century. It further analyses the role of the maritime economy’s companies within this process, and to what extent the group’s strategic objectives changed as a result. While it was still a production-oriented business group in the 1920s, it had become a global portfolio group by the early 1970s. In particular, the companies in the maritime trade sector and their market knowledge proved to be the driving force and starting point for these developments.</jats:p>