Globalisation as economic term emerged in last 50 years, but
movement of trade, people/migration in search of work, movement of capital were present in all centuries. Silk Route Not only items for trade reached many distant places but the coustoms and food too. Eg spaghetti of Italy is noodles travelled from China Common food such as potatoes, soya, groundnuts, maize, tomatoes, chillies (red), sweet potatoes came from American discovery by Columbus. Precious metals silver and gold came from the mines located in Peru and Mexico---El Dorado, the fabled city of gold. Conquest of America was done not only by firepower but biological warfare ( smallpox). In the words of John Winthorp, governor of New England Smallpox signaled Gods blessing for the colonists. In Africa Rinderpest, the Cattle Plague in 1890s killed 90% of the cattle Three types of flows within international economic exchange 1st -- Cloth or wheat 2nd Migration of people in search of employment 3rd Capital for short or long term investments over long distance.
Case study of India; agriculture: canals to get cotton, wheat, indigo,
timber, rubber; railways; forests laws to get labour, minerals: coal and iron. Role of Technology Railways, steamships and telegraph , refrigerated ships Indentured labour Case study of Caribbean islandsTrinidad, Guyana and Surinam New system of Slavery In Trinidad the annual Muharram procession was transformed into a riotous carnival called Hosay. In which workers of all races and religions joined. The protest religion of Rasta-farianism made famous by Jamaican reggae star Bob Marley. Chutney music popular in Trinidad and Guyana is another example. VS Naipaul novel capture the sense of loss and alienation. Also for Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan. The word coolies Fortunes for Indian Bankers:- Shikaripuri Shroffs / NattuKottai Chettiars / Hyderabadai Sindhi World between the Two Wars Mass Production and Consumption Eg. A well known pioneer of mass production was car manufacturer Henry Ford. T- Model Ford. Mass production lowered the costs and prices of engineered goods. Thanks to higher wages more people could now afford to purchase durable
consumer goods such as cars. Hire purchase(i.e.,on credit repaid in
weekly or monthly instalments)
The Great Depression 1929-1930s
Worldwide impact The famous economist John Maynard Keynes thought that Indian gold exports promoted global economic recovery. They certainly helped speed up Britains recovery, but did little for the Indian peasants. Rural India was in unrest when Mahatma Gandhi launched the CivilDisobedience movt. at the height of the depression in 1931. The Post War Era The war caused an immense amount of economic devastation and social disruption. Economists and politicians drew two key lessons: An Industrial society based on mass production cannot be sustain without mass consumption. A countrys economic links with the outside world.
United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference held in July
1944 at Bretton Woods in New Hampshire, USA. It established IMF to deal with external surpluses and deficits of its member nations. The International Bank for Reconstructions and Development World Bank was set up to finance post war reconstruction. Sometimes referred as Bretton Woods twins.
The Bretton Woods system inaugurated an era of unprecedented
growth of trade and incomes for the Western industrial nations and Japan. These developed countries of 1950-60s organized in G-77 to demand a new international economic order (NIEO). Which means better access for natural resources, fairer prices, manufactured goods and market. This also marked end of Woods system and beginning of Globalisation. 1970s saw the era of MNCs shift of production houses in low wage Asian countries.