International Marketing Issues. Проблемы международного маркетинга, страница 3

8)  The prevailing philosophy of world powers at that time was that political strength…

9)  India, the United States, Peru, the Philippines, India, and South Africa all share a history of…

10)  International businesses must be aware of the history of foreign exploitation in many countries, and alert to the unfortunate possibility that…

Text 2  Patterns of Trade: Developed versus Underdeveloped Countries

1. Before reading the text discuss the following questions in small groups:

1)  What factors do you think the pattern of international trade depends on?

2)  There are certain features that characterize developed and underdeveloped countries. Which of the ones listed below characterize the first category and the second one?

·  Higher industrial capacity

·  more labor-intensive agriculture

·  higher agricultural productivity

·  more capital-intensive investments in manufacturing

·  a small minority of wealthy persons

·  overall higher standards of living

·  a majority of very poor people

·  gross national product tied to agriculture

3)  What is the main reason for the growing discrepancy between the standards of living of advanced and developing countries?

4)  What efforts have been made to change traditional patterns of trade between developed and underdeveloped countries?

2. As you read the text, study thoroughly the table presenting the import and export structure of trade of developed and underdeveloped countries. Be ready to make your comments.

During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries a new pattern of division among world countries emerged. It did not mirror the classification of "colonies" and "mother countries" that existed earlier; it was based on the extent of industrial development that occurred in individual countries after the decline of economical imperialism. Countries such as the United States, Germany, Australia, and the USSR have, for various reasons, been able to diversify and develop their economies.

There are many definitions of economic development and even more ideas about how to stimulate it. Nevertheless, there is agreement that developed economies tend to have more industrial capacity than underdeveloped ones. They are also more likely to have higher agricultural productivity, more capital-intensive investments in manufacturing, and overall higher standards of living. Underdeveloped countries have more of their gross national product tied to agriculture, and agriculture is more likely to be labor-intensive. A further distinction could be income distribution: Underdeveloped countries typically have a majority of very poor people, a small minority of wealthy persons, and virtually no one in between. Income tends to be more equitably distributed in developed countries, although there are patterns in individual countries that do not fit either of these stereotypes. Since underdeveloped economies are labor-intensive and dependent on agriculture and natural resources, they have almost naturally become the resource suppliers for the developed world. In order to acquire manufactured goods unavailable in their local economies, they have traded agricultural production and natural resources for industrial and manufactured products that come from the developed world.

Globalization of Markets and Competition: Trade is increasingly global in scope today. There are several reasons for this. One significant reason is technological – because of improved transportation and communication opportunities today, trade is now more practical. Thus, consumers and businesses now have access to the very best products from many different countries. Increasingly rapid technology lifecycles also increases the competition among countries as to who can produce the newest in technology. In part to accommodate these realities, countries in the last several decades have taken increasing steps to promote global trade through agreements such as the General Treaty on Trade and Tariffs, and trade organizations such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and the European Union (EU).