1. Pro-globalists highlight the advantages of globalisation.

Do you agree with

their pro-globalist arguments, that globalisation is good?

Until 2008 going global, was a trend of various corporation, however in the
aftermath of financial, weve entered a whole new different view of globalisation.
Bremmer (2014) coin the term guarded globalization and it now comes with new
costs and risks. Therefore, I would disagree with the pro-globalization argument,
as there are a lot darker side of globalisation. Issues such as job losses, inequality
in wealth distribution, instabilities and economic crises, erosion in culture and
tradition, and also the erosion of sovereign of nation states are a few to name.
Emerging market governments, have now found that it risky to continue opening
industries to foreign competition, because local companies and consumers is at
stake. For example, in February 2013 Indias Patent Of revoked Pfizers patent for
the cancer drug Sutent and granted a domestic manufacturer, Cipla, the right to
produce a cheaper generic version to give it consumers more access to it.
According to Bremmer (2014), leaders from emerging market now knows that
the market is crucial to growing the economy and improving living standards. They
also realize that if they allow the market to decide which companies win, they risk
losing political power and they will no longer control job creation and its citizens
living standards. Ismail (2007) quoted the work of Michel Chossudovsky, Professor
of Economics at the University of Ottawa, points the finger to large global
cooperation that practices of downsizing, restructuring and relocation of
production to cheap labour country as indirectly lowering workers earning power
thus leads to poverty. Asteriou, Dimelis & Moudatsou (2014) also suggested that
financial globalization factors, mainly FDI, have been responsible for the increase
of inequality in the EU-27 in recent years.
Globalisation forces have impacts on local values and cultures as well. Most
notable is what is known as MTV culture have erode local values and heritage
culture. In Malaysia for example, youngers now know more about American music


or more lately the K-Pop rather than their local folk music and heritage. This sad
event is the collateral damage created by globalisation which somehow maybe not
be reversible.
In summary, I also would agree with Sanchez (2003) that while globalization
can help to accelerate economic growth but it should not be viewed as a reliable
substitute for a domestic development strategy.
Globalization also has an important impact on regional inequality (i.e.,
inequality across the various regions within a country) worldwide (Ezcurra and
Rodrguez-Pose, 2013). In China openness to international trade and capital flows
have benefited mostly to the developed coastal regions, often at the expense of
the less accessible and poorer inland provinces (World Bank, 2008). globalisation
through foreign trade and FDI indeed played an important role in worsening
Chinese regional inequality (Zhang and Zhang, 2003). This suggest that the process
of trade liberalization has played a role in explaining the increase in the level of
regional inequality registered over the last decades.
Reference
World Bank (2008). World development report 2009: Reshaping economic
geography. Washington, DC: World Bank.
Ezcurra, R., & Rodrguez-Pose, A. (2013). Does Economic Globalization
affect Regional Inequality? A Cross-country Analysis. World Development, 52, 92-
103.
Zhang, X., & Zhang, K. H. (2003). How does globalisation affect regional
inequality within a developing country? Evidence from China. Journal of
Development Studies, 39(4), 47-67.


2. Is globalisation resulting in countries becoming more convergent (similar)?
Why?


Yes, there are various evidences that globalization have resulted that countries
become more convergent. This is best describe by the metaphor of a shrinking
world, the idea that the world is becoming one world in some important sense in
which it has not been one before (Singer 2002). The era of globalization is largely
based on the Wests values, in particular Americas assumptions that everyone
wants to live as they do, with scholars calling it as "McDonaldization" .
McDonaldization theory (Clark and Mathur, 2003), argues that cultural influence
flows primarily from the United States to the rest of the world. Culture which
includes media products, consumable goods that assume iconic status as symbols
of modernity, foods and clothing styles (Boli and Lechner, 2001). In most part of
world, we can see that younger generation particularly have a common hangout
place, that is McDonalds which can be found through the world. Another popular
American brand which have made an in road globally is Starbucks. In one sense it
refers to the emergence of a single, global business civilization (Martens and Raza,
2010).
internationalization may be defined as the process of the firms becoming
integrated in international economic activities. The term integration covers both
cases of push and pull, and provides a more comprehensive formulation, seeing the
global economy as pre-existing and offering resources to the firm which seeks
strategic involvement at this level.

Amongst factors which facilitates this convergent is increasing cross-border flows
of capital, know-how and goods. The catalyst for this flow is the advancement in
communications and transportation technology. In the past decade also saw
increasing numbers of countries pursuing free market ideology.



UK is attempting to limit immigration, the USA is considering raising trade barriers
with China, the G20 is attempting to impose more regulatory controls on the
financial industry.
Reference:
Boli, J., & Lechner, F. J. (2001). Globalization and world culture.





Globalisation has brought positive impacts to governments and has resulted
more economic development for its people. Gurgul and Lach (2014) found strong
and robust evidence of growth-stimulating effect of globalization processes,
especially in social and economic dimensions. For example, the Chinese
government has made a decision to be one of the members of World Trade
Organisation (WTO) on 11 December 2001. With that membership, it experienced
the upgrading of a significant number of Chinese companies into the status of
international company with strong brand. Huawei Technologies and Haier, among
few companies that have achieved higher global sales compared to their domestic
sales as a result of Chinese economy embracing globalization.

The metaphor of a shrinking world, the idea that the world is becoming one
world in some important sense in which it has not been one before (Singer 2002),
or the belief that there has recently been an unprecedented increase in a cross-
border interdependence, similarities and integration. Sutcliffe and Glyn (2003),
define globalization as the increasing international integration of economic
activity.


Globalisation has brought positive impacts to governments in a longer time frame.
Globalisation has resulted more economic development for its people. Besides, it
has expended the countries infrastructure and more jobs are created. Looking
more specifically, government of China has made a decision to be one of the
members of World Trade Organisation (WTO) on 11 December 2001. With that
membership, it experienced the upgrading of a significant number of Chinese
companies into the status of international company. For example, Huawei
Technologies and ZTE Cooperation, among few companies that have achieved
higher global sales compared to their domestic sales as a result.
In the year of 2004, the percentage of foreign investment in China stood at 15.4%.
It grew rapidly and reached 19.2% in the year of 2005 and climb to 24.6% in the
year of 2006. It shot up by 10% in 2007 and grown slightly in the year of 2008
reaching 35.1%.
Pro-globalisation has highlighted that

Gurgul & Lach (2014) found strong and robust evidence of growth-stimulating
effect of globalization processes, especially in social and economic dimensions. On
the other hand, the role of political dimension of globalization was not found to be
statistically significant in any research variant.

Nazari quoted the work of Michel Chossudovsky, Professor of Economics at the
University of Ottawa. Chossudovsky points the finger to large global cooperation
that practices of downsizing, restructuring and relocation of production to cheap
labour country as indirectly lowering workers earning power thus leads to poverty.
Asteriou, Dimelis & Moudatsou (2014) suggests that financial globalization factors,
mainly FDI, have been responsible for the increase of inequality in the EU-27 in
recent years.
State capitalism, which distorts the workings of free markets and thus considerably
alters globalization, has become popular in emerging markets other than China,


such as Russia, India, and Brazil (Bremmer, 2014). In order for governments to stay
in power, leaders in these countries supports autocratic or corruption because they
know that the market is crucial to growing the economy and improving living
standards. According to Bremmer (2014), they also realize that if they allow the
market to decide which companies win, they risk losing political power and they
will no longer control job creation and its citizens living standards.



Reference
Sutcliffe, B., & Glyn, A. (2003). Measures of globalisation and their misinterpretation. The
handbook of globalisation, 61-78.
Gurgul, H., & Lach, . (2014). Globalization and economic growth: Evidence from two
decades of transition in CEE. Economic Modelling, 36, 99-107.
Asteriou, D., Dimelis, S., & Moudatsou, A. (2014). Globalization and income inequality: A
panel data econometric approach for the EU27 countries.Economic Modelling, 36, 592-599.
Bremmer, I. (2014). The New Rules of Globalization. Harvard Business Review
Ismail, N. (2007). The globalisation debate: a case of barking up the wrong
tree. University of Malaya Press