[Market Economy in Your Pocket] Let Us Lead the Age of Globalization

We are now living in the age of globalization. Globalization refers to “the phenomenon in which various barriers that impede exchange between nations are lowered, greatly expanding such exchange as a result.”

Since the beginning of human history, exchange among nations has steadily expanded, though there have at times been temporary reversals. Advances in science and technology, along with declining communication and transportation costs between countries, have made globalization possible. Globalization has been under way since long ago, but the form of globalization that has emerged since the mid-1990s has distinctive characteristics.

Globalization means the process of increasing globalism. In that sense, it differs from the concept of internationalization, in which the attributes of the nation-state are maintained and strengthened. Economic borders have already disappeared. Even individuals can now easily purchase products from companies all over the world through the internet. The age of globalization is one in which buying a product from a foreign company on the other side of the globe has become easier than going to a nearby department store.

The symbol of the age of globalization is www. In this era, the more important question is not “How destructive is your missile?” but “How fast is your modem?” The rule of competition in the age of globalization is not wrestling but the 100-meter dash. In this era, the sources of wealth are not so much land, capital, and labor as knowledge and information. The age of globalization is a world in which both friends and enemies have been transformed into “competitors.” Countries that possess knowledge and information become the winners in the age of globalization.

The nations of the age of globalization can be classified into Head Nations and Body Nations. A Head Nation is a country of knowledge and information that invents (Create) products, while a Body Nation is a country that manufactures (Manufacture) the products invented by Head Nations. Having neighboring countries rich in cheap labor is a blessing for a Head Nation. Striving to become a knowledge-based nation and pursuing a free market economy should be the guiding principles of our country in the age of globalization. Our country, which has worked so hard, has the right to become more prosperous.

The market-economy principle that everyone benefits from free trade applies well at the global level too.

Original title: [주머니 속의 시장경제] 세계화 시대를 선도하자

Author: Center for Free Enterprise (CFE)

Date: 2005-08-01

Source: https://www.cfe.org/bbs/bbsDetail.php?cid=column&pn=22&idx=10657