What Is The Role Of Globalization In The Us Today

I am a resident of the US, a country deeply involved in globalization. Here in the US, everything around me that I use on a daily basis is a product of international trade. There is not a single store or business that I can walk into that does not contain products made around the world. For example, this infographic shows how globalization plays into a single cup of coffee.

I will address what is the biggest issue regarding globalization in the US today, especially under the new government who’s behavior and beliefs are detrimental to globalization. In the US, as is the case in many other countries, there are some who find this globalization to be a frightening and negative phenomenon. They say that every product made in China is a job lost in the US. And they are right to some degree, there is indeed a heavy opportunity cost that results from globalization and it is different in every situation.

There are people left without a job when …show more content…
I see the value of specialization and efficiency that globalization brings. For example, when China can make forty tons of shoes per year and the US can make sixteen tons, it makes more sense for China to be making shoes, but especially when the US can make forty tons of silverware while China can only make sixteen tons. In this example, the US can make what it is most efficient at (silverware) and China can make what it is most efficient at (shoes) and everyone benefits from the abundance. There are eighty tons of shoes and silverware available when each country makes what they are best at, while on the contrary if the US and China try to make what they are less suitable at there will be only thirty-two tons of silverware and shoes together. This is a simplified version of why specialization (and thus globalization) is so valuable. Essentially, just basic opportunity cost calculations: