Assignment 1
Q1: Describe the shifts in the world economy over the last 30 years. What are the implications of these shifts for international businesses based in Britain, North America, and Hong Kong?
Over the last 30 years the integration of global markets along with the accessibility of international products and services has grown exponentially. The overall affect of this globalization has yet to be realized, but in the short term for the middle and lower class echelon of thee fore mentioned economies, globalization has been devastating. In the first few pages of Chapter 1 “International Business (Competing in the Global Marketplace)” an example is given referencing the necessity for international healthcare due to the rising cost and inaccessibility to quality healthcare in the United States. The most interesting part of this example to me was the following statement. “Some insurance companies are starting to experiment with payment for foreign treatment at internationally accredited hospitals”. (Hill, 2011) Initially I found this statement comforting in the fact that insurance companies were thinking outside of a microeconomic healthcare model in order to better serve the people that they insure. On a larger scale this statement is disconcerting. It is disconcerting in the fact that everything associated in our healthcare system from equipment supply to the education and utilization of our medical professionals is either being mismanaged or financial gouged by government and the private market. As a result of the gauging, like any other business cheaper goods and services are being sought out elsewhere. It is astounding that it is cheaper to fly to another country and have a major surgical procedure performed at a quarter of the cost then it would be if performed in the United States. “Globalization refers to the shift toward a more integrated and interdependent world economy.” (Hill, 2011) My concern is what does an