Economic Globalisation, Trade Liberalisation and Labour-Intensive Export Manufactures: An Asian Perspective

The term globalisation is employed across a wide spectrum to describe the on-going processes of integration of countries into the global economy. Globalisation is not new. According to Peter Lindert and Jeffrey Williamson, '[g]lobalisation has evolved in fits and starts since Columbus and de Gama sailed from Europe more than 500 years ago' (Lindert and Williamson, 2001:1). It has also assumed different forms, depending on the interactions between states, and the economic imperatives of colonial powers. In its most recent form after World War II, and especially since the 1970s, globalisation is consistent with the establishment of an international institutional structure; the restructuring of manufacturing and role of multinationals in industrialisation in developing countries; and trade liberalisation. Moreover, the extent or level of a country's integration into the international economy is being measured in terms of economic growth; and the economic performance of different states is assessed in relation to one another. This has raised concerns that growth is being emphasised at the expense of development, and these concerns have been manifested in protest campaigns against globalisation around the world, from Seattle to Sydney.