Introduction

Although world trade shrank in 2001 as a result of economic recession in the largest economies, a general characteristic of the entire post-World War II period has been a remarkable expansion of trade. In fact, global trade and investment has grown much more rapidly than output. The process of globalization has left ever fewer countries isolated or unaffected by worldwide economic conditions outside their own borders. While some protest the destruction of traditional ways of life and the challenge to national sovereignty caused by greater trade and investment, others note that trade and investment have been engines of growth that allow rising standards of living.