ABSTRACT
Globalization is transforming geographical space at a variety of levels—regional blocs, nations, regions, and localities. This chapter examines the globalizing tendencies of capitalism—the dominant socioeconomic system in the global economy—in Latin America at the end of the twentieth century. It argues that nation-states in Latin America must increasingly pursue national goals and objectives within globally defined parameters and structures. The core-periphery model in Latin America was intimately linked to structuralism and dependency theory. During the latter half of the 1980s and the 1990s, these theories have been replaced by neoliberalism as the dominant theoretical paradigm and method of analysis. The political economy of Latin American countries seems increasingly characterized by neoliberal approaches. An analysis of the development of export positions in global markets can allow analysts to examine global-local relations in the context of the neoliberal policies that are integrating Latin American economies more closely with the global economy.
