Globalizing the Rest of the World

Globalization—the defining term for the economy of the 1990s—is today a misnomer. True, the economies of industrialized nations have become increasingly intertwined through “global trade” and “global products.” But globalization has largely left out two huge regions of the globe, encompassing more than 60 countries that account for roughly 20% of the world’s population and a major share of its natural resources: Africa and Latin America. For its part, Latin America lost a full percentage point of world market share during the 1980s, ending the decade with 4%. Africa’s share fell by more than half, from 4.8% in 1980 to only 2.2% in 1988.