Chandrasekaran Balakrishnan for The 2004 Moffatt Prize in Economics
Introduction:
Globalisation is the new buzzword that has come to have under one’s thumb the world since the nineties of the last century with the wind-up of the cold war and the break-up of the former Soviet Union and the global trend towards the rolling ball. The frontiers of the status with increased reliance on the market economy and renewed faith in the private capital and resources, a process of structural adjustment spurred by the studies and influences of the World Bank and other International organisations contain started in diverse of the developing countries. Also Globalisation has brought in new opportunities to developing countries. Greater access to developed country markets and technology transfer hold gone away from promise improved productivity and higher living standard. But globalisation has also thrown up new challenges like growing dissimilarity across and within nations, volatility in pecuniary retail and environmental deteriorations. Another negative aspect of globalisation is that a great adulthood of developing countries detritus removed from the process. Till the nineties the process of globalisation of the Indian economy was constrained by the barriers to trade and investment liberalisation of trade, investment and financial flows initiated in the nineties has progressively lowered the barriers to competition and hastened the pace of globalisation
Definition:
Globalised World – What does it mean?
Does it mean the fast movement of people which results in greater interaction?
Does it mean that because of IT upheaval people can be in touch with each other in any segment of the world?
Does it mean trade and economy of each country is unfortified in Non-Intrusive way so that all varieties are available to consumer of his well-chosen?
Does it mean that mankind has achieved emancipation to a horizontal of where we can say it means a social, economic and political globalisation?
Though the precise definition of globalisation is still unavailable a few definitions worth viewing, Stephen Gill: defines globalisation as the reduction of transaction cost of transborder movements of capital and goods thus of factors of production and goods. Guy Brainbant: says that the process of globalisation not only includes opening up of world trade, development of advanced means of communication, internationalisation of financial markets, growing importance of MNCs, population migrations and more generally increased mobility of persons, goods, cash, data and ideas but also infections, diseases and pollution
Impact on India:
India opened up the economy in the early nineties following a primary crisis that led by a foreign exchange crunch that dragged the economy close to defaulting on loans. The response was a slew of Domestic and external sector policy measures partly prompted by the immediate needs and partly by the demand of the multilateral organisations. The remodelled policy regime radically pushed audacious in favour of amore open and market oriented terseness.
Major measures initiated as a part of the liberalisation and globalisation strategy in the early nineties included scrapping of the industrial licensing direction, reduction in the number of areas reserved on the side of the public sector, amendment of the monopolies and the restrictive trade practices act, start of the privatisation programme, reduction in tariff rates and substitute over to market determined exchange rates.
Over the years there has been a poised liberalisation of the current account transactions, more and more sectors opened up for foreign direct investments and portfolio investments facilitating entry of strange investors in telecom, roads, ports, airports, insurance and other major sectors.
The Indian tariff rates reduced sharply across the decade from a weighted average of 72.5% in 1991-92 to 24.6 in 1996-97.Though tariff rates went up slowly in the late nineties it touched 35.1% in 2001-02. India is committed to reduced tariff rates. Peak tariff rates are to be reduced to be reduced to the minimum with a peak rate of 20%, in another 2 years most non-tariff barriers have been dismantled by march 2002, including almost all quantitative restrictions.
India is Global:
The liberalisation of the domestic economy and the increasing integration of India with the extensive concision have helped step up GDP proliferation rates, which picked up from 5.6% in 1990-91 to a peak level of 77.8% in 1996-97. Growth rates have slowed down since the country has still bee able to achieve 5-6% growth bawl out in three of the last six years. Though growth rates has slumped to the lowest level 4.3% in 2002-03 mainly because of the worst droughts in two decades the development rates are expected to go up close to 70% in 2003-04. A Global comparison shows that India is now the fastest growing just after China.
This is major rise given that India is growth rate in the 1970s was very enervated at 3% and GDP growth in countries ilk Brazil, Indonesia, Korea, and Mexico was more than twice that of India. Though Indias as a rule annual extension rate almost doubled in the eighties to 5.9% it was still lower than the growth rate in China, Korea and Indonesia. The pick up in GDP growth has helped improve Indias global position. Consequently Indias position in the global economy has improved from the 8th position in 1991 to 4th place in 2001. When GDP is calculated on a purchasing power parity basis.
Globalisation and Poverty:
Globalisation in the form of increased integration though trade and investment is an important reason why much progress has been made in reducing poverty and global inequality over recent decades. But it is not the only reason for this often unrecognised progress, good national polices , sound institutions and domestic political stability also matter.
Despite this improvement, poverty remains one of the most serious international challenges we face up to 1.2 billion of the developing world 4.8 billion people mollify dynamic in extreme poverty.
But the modify of the world population living in poverty has been steadily declining and since 1980 the absolute number of shabby people has stopped rising and appears to fool fallen in recent years despite strong population growth in poor countries. If the proportion living in poverty had not fallen since 1987 alone a forwards 215million people would be living in extreme poverty today.
India has to concentrate on five important areas or things to follow to achieve this goal. The areas like technological entrepreneurship, new business openings for small and medium enterprises, importance of quality management, new prospects in rural areas and privatisation of financial institutions. The manufacturing of technology and management of technology are two different significant areas in the country.
There transfer be new prospects in rural India. The increase of Indian economy very much depends upon sylvan participation in the universal race. After implementing the new economic policy the role of villages got its own significance because of its unique outlook and branding methods. For example chow processing and packaging are the inseparable of the court where new entrepreneurs can insert into a big way. It may be organised in a collective way with the forbear of co-operatives to meet the global demand.
Understanding the around status of globalisation is necessary for setting course for future. For all nations to reap the full benefits of globalisation it is essential to create a level playing field. President Bushs recent proposal to eliminate all tariffs on all manufactured goods by 2015 will do it. In fact it may exacerbate the prevalent inequalities. According to this proposal, tariffs of 5% or less on all manufactured goods will be eliminated by 2005 and higher than 5% desire be lowered to 8%. Starting 2010 the 8% tariffs will be lowered each year until they are eliminated by 2015.
GDP Growth rate:
The Indian economy is passing through a difficult phase caused close several unfavourable domestic and external developments; Domestic output and Demand conditions were adversely affected by poor performance in agriculture in the past two years. The global economy experienced an overall deceleration and recorded an efficiency growth of 2.4% during the past year growth in real GDP in 2001-02 was 5.4% as per the Economic Survey in 2000-01. The performance in the first quarter of the financial year is5.8% and second quarter is 6.1%.
Export and Import:
Indias Export and Import in the year 2001-02 was to the extent of 32,572 and 38,362 million respectively. Many Indian companies have started becoming respectable players in the International scene. Agriculture exports account for about 13 to 18% of total annual of annual export of the country. In 2000-01 Agricultural products valued at more than US $ 6million were exported from the country 23% of which was contributed fro the marine products alone. Marine products in late-model years have emerged as the single largest contributor to the total agricultural export from the country accounting for over one fifth of the total agricultural exports. Cereals (mostly basmati rice and non-basmati rice), oil seeds, tea and coffee are the other protruding products each of which accounts fro nearly 5 to 10% of the countries total agricultural exports.
Where does Indian stand in terms of Global Integration?
India evidently lags in globalisation. Number of countries have a clarify lead among them China, large take a hint at in of east and far east Asia and eastern Europe. Lets look at a few indicators how much we linger.
· Over the past decade FDI flows into India have averaged around 0.5% of GDP against 5% for China 5.5% for Brazil. Whereas FDI inflows into China trendy exceeds US $ 50 billion annually. It is only US $ 4billion in the case of India
· Consider global trade Indias share of world merchandise exports increased from .05% to .07% over the pat 20 years. Over the having said that period Chinas share has tripled to almost 4%.
· Indias share of global trade is similar to that of the Philippines an economy 6 times smaller according to IMF estimates. India under trades by 70-80% given its size, proximity to markets and deceived by cost advantages.
· It is exciting to note the look at made last year by Mr. Bimal Jalan, Governor of RBI. Despite all the talk, we are now where ever close being globalised in terms of any commonly used indicator of globalisation. In fact we are one of the least globalised among the major countries however we look at it.
· As Amartya Sen and many other from pointed out that India, as a geographical, politico-cultural entity has been interacting with the outside world throughout history and still continues to do so. It has to adapt, assimilate and contribute. This goes without saying even as we move into what is called a globalised world which is distinguished from previous eras from close faster travel and communication, greater trade linkages, denting of administrative and budgetary sovereignty and greater acceptance of democracy as a way of life.
Consequences:
The implications of globalisation for the sake of a national economy are tons. Globalisation has intensified interdependence and competition between economies in the world market. This is reflected in Interdependence in regard to trading in goods and services and in movement of capital. As a occur domestic cost-effective developments are not determined entirely by domestic policies and market conditions. Rather, they are influenced nearby both domestic and international policies and economic conditions. It is thus clear that a globalising economy, while formulating and evaluating its domestic policy cannot afford to ignore the possible actions and reactions of policies and developments in the rest of the world. This constrained the policy option available to the government which implies loss of policy autonomy to some scope, in decision-making at the national level.
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References:
: Centre for International Economics, Australia. Jeffery G. Williamson T.K.Velayudham, Page 3, 66. Lecture : Prof .Sagar Jain, University of N.Carolina. Lecture : V.N.Rai. Lecture Ravi Kastia. Dr.A.K.Ojha, Third Concept An International Journal of Ideas, Aug 2002. Jan 2004, Page 30. , Page 39. This was an entry for The 2004 Moffatt Prize in Economics. See the controversy rules for more information.

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