Paper short abstract:

This paper analyzes the role of economic groups in Argentine development. It specifically delves into the examination of the formation of corporate strategies and preferences, as well as their reactions to shifts in the macroeconomic and institutional landscape.

Paper long abstract:

The research on economic groups has had varied contributions, particularly in emerging and late-industrializing countries. The study of these organizations covers debates such as forms of ownership, varieties of capitalism, relations between economics and politics, and their organizational forms vis-à-vis the classical classification elaborated by Chandler (1977) and Williamson (1975, 1985) for large U.S. firms (Amsden, 1989; Barbero & Puig, 2016; Colpan et al., 2010; Granovetter, 1995; Khanna & Yafeh, 2007; Schneider, 2009).

This paper analyzes economic groups in Argentina during the 21st century. Before the 1990s, these groups were central to shaping accumulation models. Neoliberalism then led to their decline and foreign ownership of major companies, especially those privatized. However, the 2001 economic crisis and Kirchner governments (2003-2015) favored national capital and challenged foreign ownership, especially in the energy industry, enabling the emergence and establishment of new economic groups.

This paper aims to ask what strategies were deployed by the economic groups to achieve this, as well as the reading of the macroeconomic and institutional situation that led to the strategies implemented by their managers.

We hypothesize that the expansion of the economic groups did not follow a uniform pattern; instead, they adopted differing control concepts, resulting in diverse business profiles.

In order to carry out the objective, we work by combining tools from the qualitative and quantitative paradigms. We primarily use interviews with shareholders, directors, and business managers to understand the decision-making process. Corporate reports and documents will also be analyzed, as well as official documents and resolutions.