Globalization Debate

Book review of The Globalization Debate: A Case of Barking up the Wrong Tree by Mohd Nazari Ismail, PhD.

The book provides a remarkable and deep analysis on the issues of globalization from various perspectives. The author sets out the major issues in the global economy and financial crisis around the world in a highly readable. The book is perfectly evidenced by clear examples and historical facts to attract the reader's’ interest and help them to understand the history of globalization better.

The author starts by explaining the different definitions of globalisation that adds the complexity of the issues and sow confusion in the debates of globalisation. While the world is moving towards a more global economic system, there has been anti-globalisation

This lead to a question whether today's interdependent global economy and intensified competition shift economic power away from national government toward supranational organization like WTO, EU and UN. Powerful multinationals that have strong influence in the country’s policy-making process will thereby undermining the sovereignty of nation states. However, one can claim that the power of these organizations is limited to their ability to get the countries agree to grant certain actions.The book illustrate the worse situation of erosion of sovereignty with an example of Korea which rely on large percentage of short term debts denominated in Dollars. In recent years, the economy of China has grown substantially and many Chinese companies are expanding their presence in other nations. The manufacturing and construction industry in Malaysia have undergone revolutionary changes due to huge and high-tech investments from China. The launching of Digital Free Trade Zone (DFTZ) by Jack Ma could be a strategy to reinforce his stand as a major player in the world. I am very interested to know how the implications of China’s capital control will have on Malaysia’s economy and sovereignty.

The reasons behind the problems of poverty and disparity of wealth are further discussed by the author by focusing on the power of the CEOs of large corporations, the institutional arrangements of United States current account deficit

The author use an analogy of Formula One to describe the current situation in worldwide business environment. The intensified level of competition is forcing the companies to operate at their limits of competitive abilities to avoid negative consequences such as bankruptcy. Hypercompetition has contributed to the failure of many companies in various industries. In airline industry, the emerging of no frills budget airline has forced the large carriers to operate at their minimum financial variability. In response, companies must constantly compete in price or quality, or innovate in supply chain management, new value creation, or have enough financial capital to outlast other competitors. In car industry, major car makers are facing intense competition from Asian car manufacturers, which they are forced to pursue aggressive product development strategies to suit customer changing