In The News

Globalization’s New Left

Nathan Gardels April 6, 2006
Policies meant to promote globalization – cutting public budgets, deregulating markets and liberalizing trade – have created new wealth, especially in Asia. Beneath the veneer of the growing global middleclass, however, is another story – that of the billion people worldwide who have been disenfranchised as their countries make the “structural adjustments” necessary to compete globally. In...

Don't Give Up on WTO, Fix It

Richard G. Lipsey April 4, 2006
Contrary to what its most adamant critics maintain, the World Trade Organization (WTO) is a primary defense for poor and oppressed nations against exploitation from powerful nations and companies. Economist Richard G. Lipsey traces how the international institution that regulates trade emerged from policies facilitating globalization during the latter half of the 20th century. The WTO does not...

Does Globalization Help or Hurt the World’s Poor?

Pranab Bardhan March 31, 2006
As debates over economic globalization rage, one writer ponders whether “expansion of foreign trade and investment” influences the world’s poor. Author Pranab Bardhan notes that the answer is neither a simple yes or no. By certain measures, the level of extreme poverty has lessened worldwide, but that doesn’t necessarily correlate with globalization and could be the result of some domestic...

World Bank Concerned Over India’s Economic Growth

March 31, 2006
World headlines celebrate India as a globalization success story, but the nation’s rapid growth could invite more headaches than benefits. The problem with India’s growth is its narrow focus, reports economist Priya Basu. A large part of the country’s GDP centers on information technology and software, while manufacturing and agriculture lag. Inadequate infrastructure also poses a challenge, with...

In Khartoum, the Refrain of Arab Failure

Rami G. Khouri March 31, 2006
The Arab League summit in Khartoum, poorly attended by Arab leaders, coincided with the revolt of several hundred workers in Dubai – and the two events expose problems in the Arab world. The workers, primarily from South Asia for construction projects, protested poor working and living conditions, low and delayed pay, as well as a general lack of basic rights. The leaders in Khartoum and...

Help Wanted as Immigration Faces Overhaul

S. Mitra Kalita March 27, 2006
Some landscapers, restaurants and amusement parks insist that affluent Americans no longer want to do certain types of jobs, tedious seasonal work that was once the province of high school and college students – despite increasing wages for low-skilled work and finder fees. Employers run ads to find low-skilled help, but to no avail. So the business owners resort to hiring seasonal guest workers...

Dole Blues

David Gow March 23, 2006
About one out of every four young adults in France – and one out of two in some parts of France – can’t find a job, and so the government has attempted reforms that would make youth more attractive for employers and decrease unemployment rates. The proposal would allow large companies to fire young workers, without question, within two years. A similar plan for small- and mid-sized companies went...