Aspects of Globalisation

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 686.

Think ahead

Vocabulary task

Before you read

THE ESSENCE OF GLOBALISATION

READING II

1. Match up the words on the left with the definition on the right. Translate the words into Russian.

Think over the two opinions below. Which one is closer to your own point of view?

· As business and the media globalise, and we all eat the same food, wear the same clothes and watch the same films, we are all in danger of becoming the same as everyone else.

· Globalisation is just about selling products and services to a connected world market. It's not about culture. A Chinese is not less Chinese if he wears Nikes and eats KFC.

Text 10.2Read the text and find the ideas supporting or opposing your point of view.

World trade is increasingly important for countries all over the globe. We buy and use products from all over the world. We travel regularly and can communicate easily and quickly on a global basis. This trend towards greater internationalisation of business and consumption is called globalisation.

There are many different definitions of globalisation, but at the centre of them is the idea that it involves closer integration of economies across the world. This has led to a greater movement of money, products and people across the globe. Increasingly, eco­nomies depend on each other for success. A recession in America, for example, will reduce the market for UK exports. More and more firms are operating globally and developing global brands, such as Nike or Marlboro. If you visit countries all over the world, you are likely to see a brand that you know, for example, Starbucks, Ford, Hilton or McDonald's. Some people see this as evidence of the benefits of trade. Others think it is destroying local producers and local identities, and that the power of some of the huge global corporations is too great.

To some people, globalisation is inextricably linked to large-scale corporations (often American) abusing their power and exploiting cheap labour and resources abroad. For these groups, it has become a very emotive term and has led to riots in some cities when the lead­ers of the major economies met. People protest against the power of Western firms over developing countries.

Globalisation is a controversial phenomenon. It has various aspects, which affect the world in several different ways:

- industrial: emergence of worldwide production markets and broader access to a range of foreign products for consumers and companies;

- financial: emergence of worldwide financial markets and better access to external financing for borrowers. As these worldwide structures grew more quickly than any transnational regulatory regime, the instability of the global financial infrastructure dramatically increased, as evidenced by the financial crises of 2008;

- economic: foundation of a global common market, based on the freedom of exchange of goods and capital. The interconnection of local markets however, meant that an economic collapse in any one given country could not be fatal to others;

- political: creation of a world government, which would regulate relationships between governments and guarantees the rights arising from social and economic globalisation;

- informational: increase in information flows between geographically remote locations;

- linguistic: the widespread language is English. About 75% of the world's mail, telexes and cables are in English. Approximately 60% of the word's radio programmes are in English. About 90% of all Internet traffic uses English;

- cultural: growth of cross-cultural contacts, as well as desire to increase one's the standard of living and enjoy foreign products and ideas, adopt new technology and practices, and participate in the ‘world culture';

- ecological: advent of global environmental challenges that might be solved with international cooperation, such as climate change, water and air pollution, over-fishing of the ocean, and the spread of invasive species;

-social: increased circulation of people of all nations with fewer restrictions, spreading of multiculturalism and better individual access to cultural diversity, greater international travel and tourism, greater immigration, including illegal immigration, spread of local consumer products (e.g. food ) to other countries (often adapted to their culture), and worldwide sporting events as the Olympic Games;

- technical: development of a global telecommunication infrastructure and greater transborder data flow, using such technologies as the Internet, communication satellites and wireless telephones.

Globalisation, as the growing integration of economies and societies around the world has been one of the most hotly-debated topics in international economics over the past few years. Why has globalisation occurred? There are many reasons why trade between countries has increased. There has been a gradual reduction of trade barriers across the world thanks to organisations such as the World Trade Organisation; this has made trade easier. The entry of China into the World Trade Organization, for example, significantly increased the level of competition in several markets for UK-firms and opened up a huge new market. Similarly, the growth of the European Union has created new export opportunities.

Higher incomes and standards of living in some economies have led consumers and firms to search for a wider range of products abroad. Better communication systems and information technology have made it easier for firms and consumers to know and buy what is available abroad. There has been a growth in organisations that operate worldwide; these multinational firms may want to benefit from new markets. Better transport links and lower transport costs have made trade more economically viable.

Globalisation has been widening; this means that more countries have become involved. It has also been deepening; this means that a greater amount of many countries' economic activity involves international trade.