>1) What is the rate, not absolute value, of profits from colonial investment
>( the absolute numbers don't matter anywhere
>near as much as percentages) ? Superprofits are super rate profits ,not
>super bulk profits. They are a marginal advantage. So what is the _rate_ of
>Southern contribution to value production, surplus value production, and
>rate of profit contribution ?
Rather small. Here are the figures for 2002 - share of profits on direct investment abroad for U.S. multinationals and the rate of return (profits divided by capital stock). (The profit percentages reflect the distribution of investment pretty well.) The African resuls are mostly South Africa and Nigeria (oil). Note that if there were more profits to be earned in Africa, investment levels would be much much higher.
% of profits return all 100.0% 8.1% rich countries + Asian NICs 78.7% 8.4% world ex rich + NICs 21.3% 7.4% Latin America 13.6% 6.2% Africa 1.6% 12.9%
I've got a fuller table and a discussion of this in After the New Economy, which everyone is urged to buy in bulk <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN%3D1565847709/leftbusinessobseA/>.
>2) The U.S. is still involved in interimperialist rivalry, so U.S. military
>expansion gives U.S. imperialism an advantage over EU imperialism with
>respect to exploitation of colonies. For example, U.S. business is being
>given a monopoly in Iraq.
And where else? Does the fate of U.S. capitalism depend on Halliburton's contracts?
Doug