Capitalism has been instrumental in ensuring adequate and reliable access to basic needs. Developed capitalist nations such as the United States (U.S.), United Kingdom (U.K.), European Union (E.U.), and Hong Kong benefit from economic growth (Thier, 2018). The capitalist strength of these economic regions is measured by providing public services such as healthcare, education, and security. Capitalist economies are categorized into varying types, including oligarchic, entrepreneurial, and big-firm economies. Hierarchical Market Economies (HMEs) form a fundamental category that identifies different types of capitalism in developing countries (Moore, 2017). It is objective to classify the Philippines as an HME as it depicts the four core elements describing access to capital required to initiate and sustain profit-making entities.
The presence of diversified business groups in the Philippines makes the country an HME. Many businesses in this economic zone provide different products and services under a particular brand. This approach is strategic in optimizing opportunity cost that facilitates working capital to trade. Additionally, the Philippines is a host country for Multinational Corporations (MNCs) that operate as Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) (Phillips & Sharman, 2020). These organizations provide employment opportunities to locals hence critical to the country’s economy. However, political interference to the normal functioning of the organization results in conflicts that affect many livelihoods.
The Philippines has a base of the low-skilled labor force, which is evidenced by access to education. Economic zones with few professionals and many unskilled job seekers result in limited access to national resources. Most importantly, the South East Asian country is attributed to atomistic labor relations that describe the employment sector (Paranjpe, 2020). The four core elements described above categorize the Philippines as an HME. A hostile relationship between the state and private business entities puts the country in a volatile economic situation that results in high levels of poverty. The country should, most fundamentally, address insecurity as it determines both local and foreign capital investments.
References
Moore, J. D. (2017). Varieties of capitalism in Southeast Asia. Springer.
Paranjpe, S. (2020). India’s strategic culture: The making of national security policy (2nd ed.). Routledge.
Phillips, A., & Sharman, J. C. (2020). Outsourcing empire: How company-states made the modern world. Princeton University Press.
Thier, H. (2018). A People’s guide to capitalism: An introduction to Marxist economics. Haymarket Books.