This paper recognises that the economic fabric of cities has to be considered as a dynamic outcome of aggregate outcomes of decisions by different agents made with reference to other competing locations. Drawing on interview material from a multi-industry and multi-city sample as well as company listings compiled in three countries, this paper illustrates the location dynamics of regional functions of multinational companies and the consequences these investments have on cities. The strategic actions by these firms to match activity to place attributes are examined in relation to efforts by governments to attract regional functions.
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