Competitive advantage of Nations

In this book, I have set out to make my contribution to understanding the competitive advantage of nations, or jthe national attributes that foaster competitive advantage in particular industries, and the implications both foir firms and for governments. At the core of my theory are the principles of competitive strategy in individual industries. This should come as no surprise to these familiar with my previous work. While we can idenitify national characteristics that apply to many industries, my experiecnce has been that these are oveshadowed in actual competition by particular and often industry-specific circumstances, choices, and outcomes.
The theory presented in this book attempts to capture the full complexity and richness of actual competition, rather than abstract from it. I have sought here to integrate the many elements which influence how companies behave and economies progress. Nations gain competitive advantage in industries where the home demand gives their companies a clearer or earlier picture of emerging buyer needs, and where demanding buyers pressure companies to innovate faster and achieve more sophisticated competitive advantages than their foreign rivals.