Module 4: The Economics of Globalization
Opportunities of economic globalization
What opportunities can economic globalization provide?
In this you will examine the role of trade agreements and international trade. Do these forces of economic globalization benefit the prosperity of people?
Read pages 251-260 and 218-221
Read pages 251 to 253 in Perspectives on Globalization – Do trading blocs contribute to sustainable prosperity for all people?
What trading blocs exist?
trading blocs:Â countries that have an agreement to trade freely between member countries at the exclusion of non-member countries
Read pages 254 and 255 in Perspectives on Globalization – EU Expansion: Prosperity for All?
What effects do trade blocs such as the European Union have on people?
Read pages 256 to 260 in Perspectives on Globalization. How can international trade be regulated to ensure that its benefits can be equally shared by all people?
IMF (International Monetary Fund):Â a global network of institutions created in 1945 to promote international trade and the regulation of currency among Western countries
This organization has grown from a membership of 45 countries to 185. The original role of the IMF was to stabilize the global economy after the Second World War. It is now involved in providing emergency short-term loans to less-developed countries and promotes reforms for economic growth and stability in countries experiencing economic and political issues.
What are the roles of the World Bank and the IMF since the end of the Second World War? What efforts are made to ensure that benefits of economic globalization are equally shared? Are they effective or ineffective?
Read pages 261 to 266 in Perspectives on Globalization. What opportunities and challenges has economic globalization brought to Canada?
What effects does trade liberalization have on the people of Canada?
Read pages 218 to 221 in Perspectives on Globalization.
What are the perspectives on freer trade?
Economic globalization presents great potential for increasing the material wealth of a country. This wealth could ensure the prosperity of the citizens of the country. Not all countries are in a position to access the potential of economic globalization. There exist some economic, political, and technological barriers to this access. The World Bank, the IMF, trading blocs, and agreements on trade liberalization or regulation are strategies to make the opportunities of economic globalization fair. They are not always effective in assuring benefits of economic globalization for everyone.
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