Globalisation of Capital

(A Study Commisioned by Lok Parcham (in Punjabi) and Lok Dasta (in Hindi)

Globalisation has become the catchword of the nineties. It has come torepresent the set of major changes in the world economy which have beenunderway since the last ten or fifteen years. Transnational mobility ofcapital and its global reach are central themes of these chages which areproceeding through systematic erosion, often forcible removal, of all barriersto international trade and finance.This round of global economic change is also characterised by activeparticipation of a large number of developing countries. Although there isconsiderable debate within the political spectrum of ruling classes in thesecountries over details of ongoing reforms, there is, at the same time, a nearconsensus among them about their desirability and necessity of the reforms.Advocates of the current phase of globalisation ascribe to it an inevitablecharacteristic of a natural law and claim that it carries potential of arapid growth and universal progress for economies and individuals cutting acrosscontinents and classes. Many among its critics, on the other hand, relegate itto the status of a mere design of the imperialists and reactionaries, if not anoutright conspiracy of multinationals corporations, and end up creating animpression as if pre-globalisation capitalism was in some sense preferableto its coming globalised version.Ideological and political divisions are inevitable and likely to be all themore acute over such a large-scale phenomenon which is expected to toucheveryone's life one way or another. It is necessary, however, to deepenone's understanding of the phenomenon itself and broaden one's perspective.This book is an outcome of a study which was conducted with these objectivesin mind. It goes into the question of interrelationship between economics andpolitics which has assumed newer dimensions under the spate of globalisation.

* Are nation-states about to make their exit from the stage of world history?

* What is going to be the future shape of inter-imperialist contraditions and what kind of dangers and potentials are contained in them?

* Will the Third-World nation-states lose their sovereignity to the imperialist countries as they had in the colonial period or is it more the case that sovereignity of nation-states in general is being made porous by the global mobility and fluidity of capital?

This study aims to help the reader in sketching for himself or herself anoverall picture of the world economy and of changes it is currently undergoing.It also intends to assist in a fruitful debate over the recent changes in themodus operandi of imperialism.

CONTENTS

* Introduction

*World Economy: An Overview

* Explosion in Finance and Global Expansion of Capital

* Debt: The Trap and the Crisis* Foreign Direct Investment

* Foreign Portfolio Investment* World Trade: Integration and Segmentation

* Changing Ways of Cpaitalism* Globalisation and Nation States

* Cocluding Remarks

Over 250 pagesPrice: $15.00 (Approx.)