Neoliberal Restructuring

Abstract

In modern day Chile the economic entrepreneurial landscape is made up of large multinational conglomerates, local economic groups, and so-called emerging economic groups (that burgeoned with the transformation of former government employees into owners of important parts of state-owned companies).This last group is mainly comprised of the neoliberal technocracy that designed the economic policy of the Pinochet dictatorship. The power of these emerging technical groups in democratic Chile is based not only on direct private property, but also on their participation as high-ranking officials that dominate strategic decision-making in companies and conglomerates. Their power has been consolidated with the so-called second wave of privatizations (1985-90), as they took advantage of both profound neoliberal convictions and the unconditional support for multinational companies, which technocratic officials consider to be the materialization of the globalization of the Chilean economy. In turn, many of these technocrats operate as agents or strategic executives, associating with local economic groups and transnational conglomerates. The analysis of the origin and formation of the economic groups and conglomerates that today dominate the globalized Chilean economy is the main objective of this article.