Discussion Questions

Q1) What is meant by international competitiveness? How does this concept apply to a firm, an industry, and a nation?

Q2) Go through your daily newspaper - or your internet news provider - and identify one news items of an international economic character. Discuss the importance or effect of this problem on the U.S. economy, and to you personally.

Q3) The world's trading nations have become increasingly interdependent, both from an economic and political viewpoint.

What do you think of the argument that the United States needs to restrict textile imports in order to save American jobs?

Q4) Most nations today claim to be in favor of free trade, even though most of them continue to impose many restrictions on international trade.

Explain why nations impose trade restrictions if free trade is the best policy.

Q5) It seems most everything we buy these days has the label "made in China". China has become the second largest world economy, and one of the fastest growing in the world. Discuss the factors that have allowed China to become such a large economy, and the challenges China is likely to face in the near future.

Q6) The Economic Union was formed in 1957 by West Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. Today, 27 nations are part of the EU and trade in an increasingly common market.

Indicate the possible cost and benefit to the United States from the movement to a single unified market by the European Union at the beginning of 1993.

Q7) In 1985, the United States has shifted from being a net creditor to a net debtor nation.

Discuss the benefits and risks of the United States becoming a net debtor nation.