WARSAW – Globalization brings the world together through the movement of people, things, ideas, money, and much else. But talk of globalization has become increasingly divisive, with competing assessments of the process now splitting the globalized world itself.
While middle-income countries – emerging markets – remain gung-ho about tapping into global markets and globalization-driven dynamism, and while many low-income countries see opportunities to leapfrog to greater prosperity with new technologies, the rich world is generally unhappy with the state of things. In mature industrial societies like the United States, the very idea of globalization is met with suspicion, if not outrage. In keeping with the mood, BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink struck a chord last year when he proclaimed the end of globalization, and politicians across the Western world have been touting “friend-shoring” and other forms of decoupling from China.