In The News

Asians Fear Rising US Protectionism

Michael Richardson October 3, 2003
On the eve of the annual summit of Asia-Pacific nations, many Asian countries are expressing worry over US trade policy, says Michael Richardson, a visiting senior research fellow at the Institute of South East Asian Studies in Singapore. US President George W. Bush will be welcomed at the APEC (Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation) conference later this month in the midst of what will likely be...

Globalization Hurts USA

John Sweeney October 2, 2003
With the US economy in a slump, American labor leaders are calling for a change in US trade policy. John Sweeney, president of the AFL-CIO, the largest union in America, argues that globalization, at least as it relates to trade policy, has failed both working Americans and poor workers in developing countries. Because world trade agreements encourage American manufacturing companies to take...

Piracy Shaves 11% Off Music Sales

Tim Burt October 1, 2003
Internet file sharing and downloads, as well as illegal CD manufacturing, have caused a global decline in music sales. While this may strike fear in the hearts of shareholders of the five music majors – Universal, Sony, EMI, Warner, and BMG – all is not lost. DVD sales increased by 55% in the first half of 2003, offsetting the decline in CD revenues. Yet, a representative of the major music...

Tough Struggle at Sea

September 30, 2003
Women are increasingly manning the world's ships, yet they continue to face discrimination. According to a new study published by the International Labor Office, women currently represent between 1 and 2 percent of the world's 1.25 million seafarers, serving on some 87,000 ships. Even in the Philippines – the world’s largest supplier of seafarers to the global merchant fleet – only...

Dateline Dubai

Mohamed Darwish September 29, 2003
In stark contrast to the scene at the WTO meetings this month, anti-globalization activists did not make their presence known at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) annual meeting in Dubai, UAE. Air-conditioned tents set up for them by the government were left empty, as civil society representatives instead tried to engage in dialogue with the officials. Though hostilities with...

Too Soft, Too Open, Too Democratic?

September 26, 2003
Voting in the World Bank and IMF is far from democratic – votes are determined by the amount each state contributes to the coffers, leaving poorer countries with next to no say in decisions. This undemocratic system is in line with the original intent of the Bank and IMF: they were to be the lenders, representing creditor nations. No 'bank' allows the borrower to determine policy....

Connect the Dots

Thomas Friedman September 25, 2003
The US has refused to cut agricultural subsidies to its farmers for years, and it refused again at the recent WTO meeting in Cancún. Thomas Friedman laments that fact, arguing that a real connection exists between US hypocrisy on world trade issues and the roots of anti-American terrorism. Countries like Pakistan, mired in poverty, would produce fewer angry fundamentalists willing to bomb the...