In The News

Globalization’s Second Death?

Niall Ferguson April 13, 2006
Globalization is in trouble when the US adopts a protectionist stance, argues Niall Ferguson. Extreme proposals, such as building an enormous fence along the US-Mexican border, reveal an isolationist attitude that could extend beyond the immigration issue. Politicians scrutinize the movement of labor, capital and goods in a way that calls to mind what Ferguson labels the “death of globalization”...

Has Globalization Gone too Far?

Nagesh Kumar April 11, 2006
Developed nations express growing resistance to foreign takeovers of national enterprises – from Mittal Steel’s bid for Archelor based in Luxembourg to Dubai Ports World plan to take over terminal operations of six US ports. The resistance contradicts WTO proposals from the West that would have allowed foreign investors to establish or acquire any business entity in any country. Developing...

Invest Globally, Stagnate Locally

Daniel Gross April 6, 2006
US and European companies continue to accumulate wealth, yet neither the overall economies nor the labor forces have joined the ride. Traditional theory once suggested that climbing corporate profits promote investment, create jobs and increase consumer demand, eventually driving up wages as well. With global markets, companies enjoy far-reaching success, maintaining control over distribution...

IT Mergers Have Feds Flailing Against Tech Globalization

J. Nicholas Hoover April 4, 2006
The US Department of Defense aims to scrutinize any foreign entity that wants to buy US information-technology (IT) firms. Before Canada-based Nortel Networks purchased government-contractor PEC Solutions, it had to set up a separate subsidiary and allow the Defense Department to monitor e-mails. Election-year politics in the US could lead to more intense scrutiny. In particular, the government...

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...

We Need Alexander Hamilton

Ernest C. Hollings March 30, 2006
Ernest Hollings, former senator of South Carolina, relies on early American history to compare the government and corporate approaches to trade. The second bill to pass through US Congress, in 1789, was a 50 percent tariff on all trade, which according to Hollings, allowed the US to develop its manufacturing and reduce dependence on Europe. Other presidents managed trade to nurture specific...

Trade With China Primes Cuba’s Engine for Change

Marc Frank March 29, 2006
Despite geographic distance, Cuba has opted to work with Chinese manufacturers for revamping railway cars, buses, trucks and cars. Currently, China-Cuba industrial links include trade in domestic appliances and oil rigs, as well as port-equipment to eventually handle future trade in communications, electronics and precious metals. Chinese products, affordable and reliable, prove extremely...