The new mercantilism? - direct investment by state-owned enterprises in Australian public companies

In recent times,Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs) and State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) have become active investors around the world, prompting several American authors to herald the rise of a "new mercantilism" - in which sovereign States pursue their national goals through corporate entities investing globally. The phenomenon itself is hardly new,but the potential for foreign SOEs to acquire significant shareholdings in corporations on developed markets presents a new form of the phenomenon and brings new challenges for Australian law and investment policy. In the light of the acquisition by some Chinese SOEs of shareholdings and board positions in Australian corporations, this article suggests that traditional concepts of corporate ownership and control must now be considered within the broader context of Australian foreign investment policy (including competition policy), presenting difficulties for the application of the national interest test in approving and monitoring investment approvals.