In The News

Globalization With Arab Characteristics

Marcus Noland October 17, 2007
A young workforce can be a great economic asset. Yet Arab states, with booming populations, desperately need to increase employment opportunities for young adults. Foreign investment has stagnated, limited to oil and tourism as firms remain wary of weak intellectual property rights and uncertain political transitions. Meanwhile, state-dominated economies have failed to achieve linkages to outside...

Inequality in India and China: Is Globalization to Blame?

Pranab Bardhan October 15, 2007
Globalization undoubtedly has many complex and unintended consequences. However, Pranab Bardhan, economist at University of California, Berkeley, argues that globalization cannot be credited as either an evil force responsible for rising inequality or a virtuous one behind falling poverty rates in the developing world. Conventional wisdom holds that notable increases in inequality and steep...

Latin America’s Hidden War in Iraq

Kristina Mani October 11, 2007
The mercenary companies operating in Iraq recruit a large number of fighters from Latin America – roughly a third of the estimated 30,000 currently deployed. The region boasts a large number of trained ex-military fighters, and a high level of unemployment makes many willing to accept wages that are a fraction of what American or British elite forces demand. An intense need for soldiers in the...

US Lets in More Immigrants for Farms

Nicole Gaouette October 9, 2007
Despite earlier promises about strict enforcement of immigration laws, the US Department of Homeland Security and the US Department of Labor are reportedly easing policies to welcome more immigrant workers ready to harvest tomatoes, fruit and other crops before they rot. The US refuses to release details, but farmers clamor for more workers, claiming that citizens have no interest in joining the...

Outsourcing Is Too Wild to Fit Economic Theory

Andy Mukherjee October 9, 2007
Firms that consult and perform outsourcing work make use of all available space, time and labor. Global outsourcing is highly unpredictable and firms can perform projects from many locations, explains Andy Mukherjee for Bloomberg.com. Mukherjee provides an example: When Satyam Computer Services did one project for John Deere in Illinois, the firm rented nearby space, assigning 10 engineers to...

Fewer Babies Pose Difficult Challenges for Europe

Joseph Chamie October 8, 2007
Over the next few decades, Europe's population level is expected to fall by nearly 70 million people, or 10 percent of its current level, even accounting for policies that promote immigration and reproduction. Birth rates have fallen significantly below replacement levels throughout Europe, and the continent's median age steadily climbs. As Joseph Chamie of the Center for Migration...

Thanks China, Now Go Home: Buy-up of Zambia Revives Old Colonial Fears

Chris McGreal October 5, 2007
Sino-African trade has reached unprecedented levels, but the debate over its benefits for Africa rages on. Intent on acquiring natural resources to continue its blistering rate of economic growth, China turns to African nations for oil, metals and other valuables. In return, African governments, like the one in Zambia, receive huge aid and development packages and loans at below-market rates...