While this type of economic interdependence can sometimes have negative impacts, in the long run, it allows for a more productive world. During the Silk Road period, silk was so popular in the west, much of the western economy depended on China’s ability to produce it. Similarly, during the industrial revolution, the nations that were able to industrialize the fastest had larger shares in the world’s industrial economy. The advent of the internet expanded this dramatically. Robert Samuelson writes, “From 1997 to 2006, trade expanded 6.8 percent annually compared with 4 percent growth for the world economy. The gap reflected greater globalization: more cross-border supply chains and more specialization” (Samuelson). As more nations traded goods with one another, their ability to specialize increased and the production of the world economy continues to grow. This type of economic specialization can cause some xenophobia within nations as they look to maintain their job growth, as seen in the Brexit event recently. However, these problems are minuscule compared to the production that results from specialization. Without economic globalization, the access of virtually the whole world to a product like the iPhone would not exist. Therefore, specialization has been a positive impact of economic
While this type of economic interdependence can sometimes have negative impacts, in the long run, it allows for a more productive world. During the Silk Road period, silk was so popular in the west, much of the western economy depended on China’s ability to produce it. Similarly, during the industrial revolution, the nations that were able to industrialize the fastest had larger shares in the world’s industrial economy. The advent of the internet expanded this dramatically. Robert Samuelson writes, “From 1997 to 2006, trade expanded 6.8 percent annually compared with 4 percent growth for the world economy. The gap reflected greater globalization: more cross-border supply chains and more specialization” (Samuelson). As more nations traded goods with one another, their ability to specialize increased and the production of the world economy continues to grow. This type of economic specialization can cause some xenophobia within nations as they look to maintain their job growth, as seen in the Brexit event recently. However, these problems are minuscule compared to the production that results from specialization. Without economic globalization, the access of virtually the whole world to a product like the iPhone would not exist. Therefore, specialization has been a positive impact of economic