In a recent edition of The Economist Magazine, Pankaj Ghemawat of IESE Business School in Spain points out that many indicators of global integration are surprisingly low. Only 2% of students are at universities outside their home countries and only 3% of people live outside their country of birth.
Only 7% of rice is traded across borders. Only 7% of directors of S&P 500 companies are foreigners—and, according to a study a few years ago, less than 1% of all American companies have any foreign operations.
Exports are equivalent to only 20% of global GDP. Some of the most vital arteries of globalisation are badly clogged: air travel is restricted by bilateral treaties and ocean shipping is dominated by cartels.
So what are your thoughts about the world being flat and accessible to all?
Is it just globaloney?