ABSTRACT
Globalisation has now been with us for at least 25 years or so in its modern form, whilst arguably embryonic globalisation has a history of at least several hundred years. Globalisation is advancing with a speed scarcely imaginable before now. Economist Edward Luttwak describes the new age as the unification of the sloughs, ponds, lakes and seas of villages and provinces, regional and national economies, into a single global economic area, which exposes small areas to giant waves of competition instead of yesterday's little ripples and calm tides. Foreign direct investment (FDI) is a key causal factor in globalisation as capital flows unceasingly across borders to new locations in the global quest for profit. In terms of health in China, marginalisation is on the increase. In particular, female migrants have been found to have very high rates of smoking linked inevitably to economic, social and cultural stresses associated with their urban lives.
