Week 2 / Basic Definition of Globalization Flashcards
Chapter 1
Globalization
Opening Case: Globalization of Production at
Bombardier
- Designated Metal Connection (DMC) from the United States,
- Kobe Steel LTD from Japan,
- Chengdu Sigma Precision Components from China,
- Chemetall GMBH from Germany,
- Cheltenham Tool Co. Ltd. from the U.K.,
- Centro Tratamientos from Spain,
- Castle Metals from Mexico
Lack of Barriers to Trade and Investment
• Transportation – sold to Alstom SA (France)
• Commercial Line – sold to Airbus (multinational – France,
Spain, Netherlands)
Opening Case:
GM and Its Chevrolet Supercar, The Corvette ZR1
Eight distinctive automotive brands under GM umbrella
GM operates on 5 continents and has a strong
presence in China
Chevrolet-branded vehicles sold in all markets
worldwide
What Is Globalization?
Definition
As per Wikipedia
Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. (Wikipedia)
What Is Globalization? (1) Textbook definition
Globalization refers to the shift toward a more integrated and interdependent world economy.
Globalization has several different facets, including:
- Globalization of Markets
- Globalization of Production
- Globalization of Consumers
The Globalization of Markets
-The merging of historically distinct and separate national markets into one huge global marketplace (definition)
- In many markets, the tastes and preferences of
consumers in different nations are converging on some
global norm, creating a global market
• Examples: Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, IKEA, Starbucks, Apple
The most global of markets are for industrial goods and
materials that serve universal needs around the world
• Aluminum, oil, wheat, microprocessors
Globalization of Production
- Refers to the sourcing of goods and services from locations around the world to take advantage of national differences in costs and quality of factors of production (labor, energy, land and capital).
- Companies lower overall cost structure and/or improve quality or functionality of product offering, thereby allowing them to compete more effectively
The Globalization of Production
• Early outsourcing was primarily for manufacturing
• Today, modern communications technology allows
companies to outsource services
The Emergence of Global Institutions
Global Institutions (definition) • Manage, regulate, and police the global market place • Promote the establishment of multinational treaties to govern the global business system
Examples to be discussed: World Trade Organization (WTO) International Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank United Nations (1945)
World Trade Organization (WTO)
• Responsible for policing the world trading system and
making sure nation-states adhere to the rules laid down in trade treaties signed by WTO member states
• Founded in 1995
• Polices world trading system and ensures nations adhere to the
rules established in WTO treaties
• Succeeded the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
• 164 nations accounted for 98 percent of world trade (2017)
International Monetary Fund and World Bank (created in 1944)
• IMF was to maintain order in the international monetary system
Lender of last resort to nation-states whose economies are in turmoil and whose currencies are losing value
• World Bank was to promote economic development
Provides low interest rate loans to cash-strapped governments that wish to undertake infrastructure investments (building dams or road systems,..)
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- The IMF loans come with strings attached:
- Countries are required to adopt specific policies aimed at returning their troubled economies to stability and growth.
• Some critics charge that the IMF’s policy recommendations are often inappropriate
- Maintains order in the international monetary system
- Lender of last resort
- Requires nation-states to adopt specific economic policies in return for loans
The World Bank (WB)
WB is a group comprised of the following:
• IBRD- the Int’l Bank for Reconstruction and Development
• IDA- International Development Association
• IFC- International Finance Corporation
• MIGA- Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency
• ICSID- International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes
Big difference between IMF and World Bank is shifted from their origin policy
United Nations (UN)
- Maintains international peace and security
- Develops friendly relations among nations
- Promotes cooperation in solving international problems
- Promotes respect for human rights
- A center for harmonizing the actions of nations
- Includes 193 member countries
Drivers of Globalization (1)
Two macro factors seem to underlie the trend toward
greater globalization:
• Decline in barriers to the free flow of goods, services,
and capital, since the end of World War II
• Technological change in communication, information
processing, and transportation
Drivers of Globalization (2)
1) Declining Trade and Investment Barriers
- Lowering barriers to international trade enables firms to view the world, rather than a single country, as their market.
- Reducing and eliminating trade and investment barriers allows firms to base production at the optimal location, serving the world market from that location.
- A firm might design a product in one country, produce component parts in two other countries, assemble the product in yet another country, and then export the finished product around the world.
Declining Trade and Investment Barriers
• International trade occurs when a firm exports goods or services to consumers in another country
• Foreign direct investment occurs when a firm invests
resources in business activities outside its home country
• During 1920s and 1930s, many nations put up barriers to
international trade to protect domestic industries
- After WWII, advanced Western countries reduced barriers
- GATT, Uruguay Round, and WTO
Table 1.1 Average Tariff Rates on Manufactured
Products as Percentage of Value
See slide 40
France in 1913 was 21%, USA in 1913 was 44%,
In 2020 they were less than 2%