Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) have been at the forefront of changes in the global economy, as transportation and communication costs have declined, technologies have facilitated more complex operations, and trade and investment barriers have lessened over the last few decades.
Understanding the structure and behaviour of MNEs is fundamental to the production of consistent global statistics. This information facilitates analysis of the impact of globalisation on value chains and provides transparency to the public with regards to large enterprises operating in their region. Examples include:
- The long road to gender parity in senior leadership positions (OECD Statistics Blog article, 15 Dec 2023)
- Unveiling the emission reduction plans of multinational enterprises (OECD Statistics Blog article, 30 Nov 2023)
The Multinational Enterprise Information Platform is a joint initiative of OECD and UNSD to provide an understanding of the structure of MNEs and related material. Published as a dashboard (see below), it comprises two core registers and a media monitor:
- The Global Register (xlsx): Covering the structure of the 500 largest MNEs by providing information on the MNE’s head, their subsidiaries, their location and their ownership structure when available.
- The Digital Register (xlsx): Covering the web presence of MNEs around the world by providing a list of connected websites and their relative importance determined by the number of visitors and the importance of links to their website (page rank).
- The Media Monitor: Covering media articles relating to the largest 500 MNEs for 2022 and 2023. The aim of this data is to provide indications of significant events for each given company, such as mergers, acquisitions, restructuring and investment.
The Multinational Enterprise Information Platform is built solely from publicly available information, utilising advanced data processing and handling to develop a unique source of information on MNEs. The dataset includes information to link subsidiaries to key information provided by OpenCorporates, GLEIF and PermID, allowing users to develop further insights.
The latest release of the Multinational Enterprise Information Platform covers data as of 31st December 2022, with previous vintages available below and supplementary releases to continue on an annual basis. Explorations to improve the timeliness, frequency and coverage of the information are in progress.
