Globalization

We stand on the brink of great changes. From an energy crisis to new technology to the war on terrorism, the business world reels from vigorous upheavals and new innovations. Yet what will be the issue that will truly define business for the next twenty-five years?

The growth rate experienced by China after it reduced its trade barriers at 1999 is jaw-dropping. Indeed, in the past year, ChinaÐŽ¦s total exports and imports are 1.47 Trillion USD which is a 312% growth comparing to 2000ÐŽ¦s 0.47 Trillion, and ChinaÐŽ¦s GDP grows apace. Yet will the 21s century be all about China, or, in fact, is something deeper at play?

The growth of China is only part of a crucial trend: globalization. Under globalization, developing countries enjoy unprecedented information and resources support the basic building blocks of Comparative Advantages. Today, India, Russia, Eastern Europe, and the Middle-East are developing rapidly thanks to outside help and internal ingenuity. The potential for such states is near-limitless: India and Russia both have a large amount of resources and undeveloped regions, while the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates will soon become one of the most important financial centers in world. Led by China, ÐŽ§The WorldÐŽ¦s FactoryЎЁ, such countries are playing a key role in bringing the present business system into a totally new era, and the ramifications of their growth extend well into the First World.

Globalization has caught up the entire world in its sway. Countries cannot simply choose whether or not to follow the globalization trend. Emerging from domestic contractions, entrance into new markets is a crucial step for many nations on the road to growth. Moreover, such developments will catalyze relations between such developing countries, transforming the global power balance. Indeed, in the recent past, China has signed new trade agreements with Russia, and divisions which once separated Eastern Europe are now being overcome, as different countries trade together and enter the EU. Thanks to globalization, the global constellation of power has shifted and democratized. Against this background, the role of developed countries has shifted from that of being drivers to now being passengers -- whoever is not willing to go along with the trend of developing countries will be left behind and therefore fall into an difficult period of recession. Now, more than ever, countries