BENGA stands for "Bridging Evolving Nations to Global Alliance" (which is also a fun monicker for our group based on our names). :)
As students and as the future generation, we all have a social responsibility - this responsibility we must hold true to ourselves as active contributors and as loyal members of our society. The future of business lies in our hands, to contribute and raise perpetual awareness.
Our logo represents the process of bridging and connecting different countries and cultures in alliance.
Introducing Team Benga
Members
I’m James! I’m studying International Business at the University of Kent in the UK, but I’m spending the whole of my third year in Hong Kong. In my spare time I enjoy playing sports; most notably football and athletics. I also like to see as much live music as I can, and enjoy watching movies, and traveling.
I'm Elsa, an exchange student from York University in Toronto, Canada. I am in my third year in the business administration program specializing accounting. I was born on a small island off the South East coast of the African Continent called Mauritius, where I lived for 9 years. My first language was French as it is the main language in Mauritius - I wish I could speak Chinese languages though! In my spare time, I love to read, watch movies, volunteer and try to do graphic designs! I would love to travel the world, meet new people and eat delicious food everyday. :)
I'm Penny! I am a local student. I am doing my last semester in CityU now. I love Hong Kong. I can speak Cantonese, Chinese, English, and Hakka. I like singing and I joined the church choir last year, I really enjoy it. Apart from that, I enjoy the time with my family when I feel the most comfortable.
I’m Annie! I am a senior in business administration as a marketing major. I’m Chinese born American, born and raised in Los Angeles, California. I enjoy playing no-limit Texas Hold 'Em poker and chess! I see them as a sport and I absolutely love it. I have a fear of heights so I took up mountain climbing and hiking "14ers" to face my fear, which I’ve also grown to love. (“14ers” are a special nickname for all the mountains and peaks 14,000 feet of elevation above the mean sea level.) I love a lot of things, especially learning and traveling, and enjoying a glass of red wine with great company. I am in constant active pursuit to feed my ambitious goals for the rest of my life. Haha.
BENGA's Goals
We have several goals which we hope will help us in our daily lives at school and in the future at work. We would like to study globalization in more depth in order to enable us to be competitive for the international business market.
We would like to inform our fellow classmates about issues surrounding management and international issues affecting the way management is carried out. As well, we would like to try to gather as much knowledge as possible during our time spent in Hong Kong and particularly within this module, to better ourselves as students of business, and as human beings.
The diversity of our group allows us to explore different facets of cultures from several areas in the world. We will be able to learn from each other and apply the newly gained knowledge to other features of our lives. Engrossing ourselves within the cultural ‘Melting Pot’ that this opportunity provides us with will enable us to sharpen our skills and gain new experiences.
Weekly Topics
Our group is looking forward to learning about the following topics in the upcoming weeks:
1. Intercultural communication and conflict resolution, leading and motivating workers in international cultural contexts and managing virtual organizations.
1. Intercultural communication and conflict resolution, leading and motivating workers in international cultural contexts and managing virtual organizations.
2. Cultural differences and proper etiquette when handling international relationships: to become more sensitive and tolerant of other beliefs and customs which allows managers to lead and motivate workers globally.
3. Technological breakthroughs that create virtual organizations and how to manage these types of organizations.
Interesting Additional Topics
Our group is curious in the following topics relating to international management:
1) Managing Risk and Uncertainty
1) Managing Risk and Uncertainty
2) Sustainability and Green Management
3) Image Restoration Strategies and Global Philanthropy
4) Leading and Motivating Workers in International Cultural ContextsMyth
Q. Has Globalization enabled equal bargaining power among countries?
Many believe that globalization has created equal bargaining power among countries. However, our research has proven that this is not the case.
One particular event involving China's involvement with the United States' debt crisis is used as an example.
First, in recent years China has recycled vast amounts of its trade surplus into US government bonds, or Treasuries, and owned almost $700bn of the bonds at the end of 2008. President Obama will be hoping that China maintains its appetite for Treasuries to help finance his administration's stimulus plan.
Neoliberalism
To illustrate the unequal bargaining power of countries under globalization, we make reference to past events in terms of culture, political, military, technology, economy, social, as well as relate the notion of neoliberalism.
Euronews segment illustrating China's anger at the United States' debt
First, in recent years China has recycled vast amounts of its trade surplus into US government bonds, or Treasuries, and owned almost $700bn of the bonds at the end of 2008. President Obama will be hoping that China maintains its appetite for Treasuries to help finance his administration's stimulus plan.
Compare to the past, China doesn’t have much bargaining power but since it becomes the no. 1 U.S. bonds buyer, China’s bargaining power increases.
Even U.S. urges China to open Yuen’s market. China rejects and shifts the focus back to the U.S. bonds.This incident shows the imbalance bargaining power among countries under globalization. Rather, under the impact of financial tsunami in 2008, economic strength decides the bargaining power of particular countries.
Culture
Culture affects bargaining power of countries. For example, corruption in China makes foreign investors difficult to set up business in China. Relationship also called “Guan Xi” in Chinese is the utmost important element to do business.
Political
Political environment varies in countries. China and North Korea have one dominant party. People’s Republic of China (PRC) is China’s sole legitimate government. U.S.A, U.K, France, other European countries have many political parties who are elected by citizen.
China has greater bargaining power in United Nations Security Council, Taiwan cannot enter the organization because China rejected.
Military
Many countries increase their military budgets. For instance, China increased its military budget 12.7% to 601.1bn yuan ($91.5bn; £56.2bn) up from 532.1bn yuan last year, officials said in 2011.
The United States invasion of Afghanistan, codenamed Operation Enduring Freedom, took place after the destruction of the Twin Towers on 11 September 2001 in New York, United States of America, by the Al-Qaeda terrorist group. The event marked the beginning of the United States of America's "War on Terrorism". Afghanistan was invaded by the USA for failing to comply with a United Nations Resolution to hand over Osama Bin Laden, leader of Al-Qaeda ; an ultimatum to close terrorist training camps in Afghanistan, and "hand over every terrorist and every person and their support structure to appropriate authorities"; and give the US full access to terrorist training camps to verify their closure.
Technology
China’s technology breakthrough makes it possible to set up satellites in the space and join the space races with other countries.
Economy
China has positive economy growth even in Financial Tsunami in 2008. Many countries need China’s economy. One example, China buys bulky sum of bonds from the U.S.A and become the largest debtor.
Chinese dollar “yuen” was claimed to be undervalued which makes the imbalance trades to other countries. The U.S.A sets up tax for the Chinese goods. At the same time, U.S.A provides subsidy to the local farmers to fight against with China.
Social
Many countries because of geographic locations do not have many natural resources such as Japan and Singapore. Those countries rely on other countries resources like oil. This will lower their bargaining power.
Neoliberalism
Globalization and Neo-liberalism
1. THE RULE OF THE MARKET.
Liberating "free" enterprise or private enterprise from any bonds imposed by the government (the state) no matter how much social damage this causes. Greater openness to international trade and investment, as in NAFTA. Reduce wages by de-unionizing workers and eliminating workers' rights that had been won over many years of struggle. No more price controls. All in all, total freedom of movement for capital, goods and services. To convince us this is good for us, they say "an unregulated market is the best way to increase economic growth, which will ultimately benefit everyone." It's like Reagan's "supply-side" and "trickle-down" economics -- but somehow the wealth didn't trickle down very much.
Liberating "free" enterprise or private enterprise from any bonds imposed by the government (the state) no matter how much social damage this causes. Greater openness to international trade and investment, as in NAFTA. Reduce wages by de-unionizing workers and eliminating workers' rights that had been won over many years of struggle. No more price controls. All in all, total freedom of movement for capital, goods and services. To convince us this is good for us, they say "an unregulated market is the best way to increase economic growth, which will ultimately benefit everyone." It's like Reagan's "supply-side" and "trickle-down" economics -- but somehow the wealth didn't trickle down very much.
2. CUTTING PUBLIC EXPENDITURE FOR SOCIAL SERVICES.
For example, education and health care. REDUCING THE SAFETY-NET FOR THE POOR, and even maintenance of roads, bridges, water supply -- again in the name of reducing government's role. Of course, they don't oppose government subsidies and tax benefits for business.
For example, education and health care. REDUCING THE SAFETY-NET FOR THE POOR, and even maintenance of roads, bridges, water supply -- again in the name of reducing government's role. Of course, they don't oppose government subsidies and tax benefits for business.
3. DEREGULATION.
Reduce government regulation of everything that could diminish profits, including protecting the environment and safety on the job.
Reduce government regulation of everything that could diminish profits, including protecting the environment and safety on the job.
4. PRIVATIZATION.
Sell state-owned enterprises, goods and services to private investors. This includes banks, key industries, railroads, toll highways, electricity, schools, hospitals and even fresh water. Although usually done in the name of greater efficiency, which is often needed, privatization has mainly had the effect of concentrating wealth even more in a few hands and making the public pay even more for its needs.
Sell state-owned enterprises, goods and services to private investors. This includes banks, key industries, railroads, toll highways, electricity, schools, hospitals and even fresh water. Although usually done in the name of greater efficiency, which is often needed, privatization has mainly had the effect of concentrating wealth even more in a few hands and making the public pay even more for its needs.
5. ELIMINATING THE CONCEPT OF "THE PUBLIC GOOD" or "COMMUNITY" and replacing it with "individual responsibility." Pressuring the poorest people in a society to find solutions to their lack of health care, education and social security all by themselves -- then blaming them, if they fail, as "lazy."
Thank You
We hope you enjoyed our blog! Please feel welcome to contribute your thoughts and observations.
Extension:
Thank you all your comments!
For this extension, we want to response to several points from your comments.
Some comments suggested that we could include the meaning of bargaining power. Should it refer to the oil resources, military operations, GDP, or anything else?
Bargaining power is a concept related to the relative abilities of parties in a situation to exert influence over each other.
( "Bargaining Power." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 05 June 2012. Web. 07 May 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bargaining_power>.)
In our blog, we wanted to look at how globalization influences the bargaining power of different countries in the world. Bargaining power means the abilities that one country has influence on other countries in world trade or in the United Nations because of certain influencing factors.
Basically, culture, political, military, technology, economy, and social are the factors can be affecting countries bargaining power in different ratios. However, in this blog, we are going to discuss Natural Resources and Economy factors which we believe are the main factors affecting countries’ bargaining power, in deep.
Natural resources
Natural resources such as oil, coal and other chemical elements do affect countries’ bargaining power. More natural resources mean greater bargaining power; less natural resources mean smaller bargaining power.
Top Ten Oil Exporting Countries:
Saudi Arabia (8.73 million barrels per day)
Russia (6.67)
Norway (2.91)
Iran (2.55)
Venezuela (2.36)
United Arab Emirates (2.33)
Kuwait (2.20)
Nigeria (2.19)
Mexico (1.80)
Algeria (1.68)
Top Ten Oil Importing Countries:
United States (11.8 million barrels per day)
Japan (5.3)
China (2.9)
Germany (2.5)
South Korea (2.1)
France (2.0)
Italy (1.7)
Spain (1.6)
India (1.5)
Taiwan (1.0)
According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, America's international deficit in goods and services trade soared 18% from 2004 to a record $726 billion in 2005. Dramatic increases in the cost of petroleum products and the volume of oil imports were responsible for some two-thirds of the increase in the U.S. trade deficit in 2005.
"Top Ten Oil Countries." Suite101.com. Web. 07 May 2012. <http://daniel-workman.suite101.com/top-ten-oil-countries-a2088>.
Under globalization, corporations can expand their business to other countries freely. Business involves two parties; one sells products or services, one buys the products and services.
Oil is very important products to countries. However, some countries like Saudi Arabia are abundant of oil natural resources but some countries such as the United States, Japan, and China do not have sufficient oil resources to supply internal demand. Therefore, they rely heavily on oil import from countries with abundant oil supply. However, they will suffer a lot during the fluctuation of oil prices. In this case, United States, Japan, and China have less bargaining power in terms of natural resources than Saudi Arabia and Russia.
Economy
Economy is another main factor affecting countries’ bargaining power. Countries with powerful economy status can have greater bargaining power in the United Nations.
For example, Taiwan is restricted to enter the United Nation. The main reason is because of objection from China. China believes that Taiwan is part of China’s region so it cannot be separated as a “Country”.
However, China is a great economy country in the world. During the financial tsunami in 2008, many countries include the United States and European countries suffered from economic downturn, but China has its GDP growth by 8%. It is believed that, the ongoing great economy power of China makes China plays a big role in the United Nation. China has greater bargaining power than Taiwan in the global market, therefore, Taiwan is rejected to enter the United Nation due to great objection from China.
To conclude, globalization affecting bargaining power of countries is definitely a very interesting topic. There are still many other perspective can be looked into. The purpose of our blog is to bring out this topic and provided some insight to audiences.
Sources Cited
BBC News. 2001: US launches air strikes against Taleban. Retrieved January 29, 2012, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/7/newsid_2519000/2519353.stm
BBC News. China says it will boost its defense budget in 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2012, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12631357
BBC News. China says it will boost its defense budget in 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2012, from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12631357
China Culture.Org. Great Achievements in China's Space Technology. Retrieved February 14, 2012, from http://www.chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2005-06/30/content_70274.htm
Economic Times. US must stand up to China on currency: Hillary Clinton. Retrieved January 31, 2012, from http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/us-must-stand-up-to-china-on-currency-hillary-clinton/articleshow/10359455.cms
Foster, P. Chinese premier Wen Jiabao worried about US debt. Retrieved February 9, 2012, from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/g20-summit/4984924/Chinese-premier-Wen-Jiabao-worried-about-US-debt..html
Global Security.Org. World Wide Military Expenditures – 2011. Retrieved January 31, 2012, from http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/spending.htm
Gurung, T. Few Things to Know Before Doing Business in China! Retrieved January 28, 2012, from http://ezinearticles.com/?Few-Things-to-Know-Before-Doing-Business-in-China!&id=1854600
Lee, J. 5 tips to invest and do business in China. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from http://www.china-window.com/china_business/doing_business_in_china/5-tips-to-invest-and-do-b.shtml
Martinez, E. What is Neoliberalism? Retrieved February 1, 2012, from http://corpwatch.org/article.php?id=376
Neuhof, F. Iran oil ban to put pressure on European supply lines. Retrieved January 13, 2012, from http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/industry-insights/energy/iran-oil-ban-to-put-pressure-on-european-supply-lines
New York Times. UN rejects Taiwan application for entry. Retrieved January 27, 2012, from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/24/world/asia/24iht-taiwan.1.6799766.html
SA History.Org. US Invades Afghanistan. Retrieved January 29, 2012, from http://www.sahistory.org.za/dated-event/us-invades-afghanistan
Hey Team Benga,
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that bargaining power between the countries is not the same at all. Nevertheless, I am trying to understand the way you structure your blog. Here is what I think:
As far as I perceive it, you are trying to say, that globalization has led to an exploitation of the developing nations (hence the video in the end).
I believe that this is an interesting topic to look at, but eventually from a different perspective. If you look at 'bargaining power' per se I recommend to concentrate on how you define bargaining power. What are you referring to? Try to find a topic for which a nation is bargaining. Suitable may be:
- Oil
- Trade barriers
- Military operations
I believe that if you concentrate on one of these (or similar) topics of global interest then you may be able to more clearly figure out which country is holding an upper hand in a negotiation. Especially the currency problem between the US and China may be a great topic. Have a look at this article which is about the Asia-Pacific military operations of the US for the upcoming years. Interesting read!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/17/obama-asia-pacific-address-australia-parliament
I agree with you: I think that Globalization has not enabled equal bargaining power among countries.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I regret that most of your article focuses on China and does not get the issue into perspective with other countries in the world to illustrate your opinion. It is clear that China has now, thanks to Globalization a bigger bargaining power, if not the biggest in the world, mainly due to its economical and political power. But what about the other countries? Has the bargaining power of other countries be reduced? Have other countries taken advantage of Globalization to improve their bargaining power?
Moreover, to my mind, your paragraph about the neo-liberalism is not clear enough. The link between this notion and your myth is not made, and I do not really understand to what extent it helps us to understand why you support this opinion.
Thank you for your work in any case!
Hello Benga,
ReplyDeleteNice work. That was interesting! I have a couple of concerns to raise though: A lot of the points you have raised, while perfectly valid, do not necessarily seem directly attributable to Globalization.
I'll start with Culture and Political Orientation. Taiwan has indeed been blocked from joining the UN Security Council. Part of the reason for this is its hazy definition; it is not categorically a province of China nor is it an independent nation. It is true, however, that China, as one of the biggest economies in the UN, has used its power to influence UN policy. However, this is but one type of bargaining power; i.e. bargaining power between nations. If we look at bargaining power in terms of multinationals and nations, this kind of cultural/political value has less grounding.
A country's culture and political system will do very little to deter investors if the market is extremely attractive, and I give China to you as a perfect example of this. Huge MNC's like Google have been at Loggerheads with the Chinese government over their restrictions, yet they have not pulled out of China (but rather conformed) because China's massive population and swelling middle class makes business attractive despite the challenges. In this vein, globalisation has actually given otherwise powerless economies a huge amount of power. If we look at the Rare Earth metal market (17 metals essential to production of technology like eco friendly cars, etc.), we see how China has been given an incredible amount of power, as it holds 90% of the world's reserves. On the other hand a nation like the Congo, which is rich in nearly every mineral under the son, has little bargaining power because of its political unrest. The resource is simply poorly managed. This brings me to my next point.
Natural resources as bargaining power... While natural resource is a good account of the bargaining power a nation has, one cannot disregard the role sound management and economic policy has in a country's bargaining power. There are not many natural resources Dubai has in abundance aside Oil, yet it has become a hub for global business. Several developing nations have oil as well (although not as much as Dubai) yet they are in no position to bargain the way Dubai can bargain with foreign multinationals. My homeland, Nigeria, has too much oil for its own good, but it is nowhere close to the level of development of Dubai and is in no way close to being able to attract the investment Dubai attracts, and hence has much less bargaining power. Both Dubai and Nigeria have tonnes of oil, so why is it that Dubai is a hub for global business and can effectively demand that multinational firms entering the country must have part of their business revenue held by the UAE, but Nigeria has barely enough clout to protect its people? This is because of management of the oil and in fact, Dubai has managed its oil so well that the bulk of the government's money now comes from trade.
40041596German made a good point in asking for clarification on what criteria for bargaining power we are looking at, as there are several angles to look at this from.
Either way you look at it, it is definitely true that globalisation has altered bargaining power though.
Hey guys,
ReplyDeleteReally interesting topic that you have chosen and definitely an important issue especially with the current economic uncertainty in many different countries and the clear shifting of 'power' from western to eastern countries.
Some really interesting points have been brought up previously regarding oil and human capital as a bargaining chip. I especially like Vladimir's example highlighting the difference between Congo and Dubai and how management of resources is key to increasing bargaining power.
I think an interesting point to explore is regarding the European Union. These European countries have joined forces in order to create a more powerful alliance and provide each other with economic benefits. An interesting topic to further explore would be how this union has affected the bargaining power of countries within the union and with those countries outside of the union, especially now with the current financial climate.
I agree with you. It is undeniable that Globalization has not enabled equal bargaining power among countries. Nonetheless, I regret that you have focused a lot on China to the detriment of other countries, which should be reviewed. To my mind, a perspective among the different countries could have brought more interest to your article. For instance, it could have been interesting to know if the bargaining power has been reduced in other countries, if other countries have improved their bargaining power, how and why, what the situation for European countries is …
ReplyDeleteSecond, I do not really understand the role of the second part about the neo-liberalism. You explain the main points of it but I do not see the link to your subject, thus it is hard for me, as a reader to get what your point is by developing this paragraph.
Thank you in any case.
Hello BENGA,
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I do agree your opinion that bargaining power among countries is unequal, however, just like the other guys said, I'm quite confused about your definition of bargaining power and how it relates to globalization.
I totally agree with 40036513 - 007's point that EU is a best example to start this topic. Europe is accelerating its process of economic integration. They introduce a common currency and remove the trade barriers. These countries increased their union bargaining power against other countries that outside EU.
Another topic that I'm interested in is the bargaining power between MNCs and countries. For example, China is the largest labor market, to enjoy lower production costs, many MNCs choose China to set up their production plants such as Adidas and Nike. Since the globalization enables mass production and economies of scale, does China increase its bargaining power against those big companies due to globalization?
This myth is a quite interesting topic and wish you good luck.
To be honest, your opinions and illustrations are so fascinating that I really enjoy your work. Definitely, globalization is a double-edged sword, while it brings some benefits to less developing countries, the development countries are becoming richer. Correspondingly, the inequality of bargaining power is following. As you mentioned, since China entered into WTO, it is getting closer to the world in almost every aspects. Obviously, it facilitates the development of China's economy so that the influence of China in the world is expanding. In other words, China is acquiring more bargaining power than before. That could be proved by the case of debt issue among China and USA you mentioned. Hence, although globalization will not create equal bargaining power among countries, it could help some countries take the opportunities to catch up with developed countries to some extent. Therefore, I have to say I just agree with your opinions partially.
ReplyDeleteHello, Benga
ReplyDeleteI would like to say that the myth you have chosen is very relevant and topical.
Indeed, there is a discrepancy in the bargaining power among different countries, especially between the developed and developing ones.
I agree with Global Observer that it is worthwhile to have a look at other countries because nowadays "western" one are still leaders on the global market.
I also consider that it would be worthy to concentrate on something more precise to define the difference in the bargaining power among the countries.
Talking about this topic, you should see the two opposite sides of this problem. if you look at the global market right now, on one hand, the countries with a substantial bargaining power imposer their rules to others, but on the other hand, they also provide a certain aid for the development or solving current issues of the contries with less possibilities to consume.
However, your vision of the problem is very interesting.
Hey Team Benga,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the sharing. I appreciate the research you guys have done. It’s informative and shows a wide range of consideration you all have taken to present the topic.
To a certain extent, I do agree with the claim that globalization fails to equalize the bargaining power among the countries. I think it’s impossible for nations to have equal bargaining power in reality. As we know, nations that have stronger economic development, possess more rare resources like fossil fuel or mineral mine, or have military advancement over others would definitely have more bargaining power in negotiating the global issues. Though the American has suffered a lot from the recent financial crisis, the American government still has a strong bargaining power in the world as it is the biggest economy and possesses the most advanced army group. Since the nations cannot simply “create” or “narrow” the power difference in one step, the power gap among different countries would continue to prevent the equalization of bargaining power in the reality.
However, I think globalization does narrow the difference in bargaining power among the countries. The growth of China is a pretty good example to illustrate the claim. Since its entry into WTO, China has had more international trade and better economic development which somehow promote China’s bargaining power in the recent years.
Hello Benga Benga,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that globalization has not and will not create equal bargaining power among countries. First of all, I feel that for the most part you are just comparing China and the U.S. I agree with many of our other classmates in saying that you should definitely look at it from the perspectives of a few other countries. Countries from the European Union would add in a good mix.
Although I do agree with you, I have to point out that I really agree with smilyface. I was thinking the same thing while I was reading your article. Globalization does narrow the difference in bargaining power among some countries. However, at the same time I think it will pull other countries more apart. Why? You ask. Well, the MNCs tend to develop from the same handful of countries. These countries will become more united as far as bargaining power goes. But what about the smaller countries without much to contribute. Their bargaining power would diminish as compared to the bigger nations.
Hey Benga Benga!
ReplyDeleteI will start off by saying a what great job you've done with the setting up of and the overall appearance of your site, greatly done to attract much attention. As to the contents of your blog, I totally agree with the idea that globalization has created inequality of bargaining power between countries. With this said, I would also suggest, like many have, that the focus should not be mainly put on China, but should focus on other countries as well. Some of the global leaders of today remain in the western part of the world, where for example, countries from the European Union could of brought up an interesting mix to the topic.
Some other interesting points that I really enjoyed reading on your blog would be your topic mentioning oil and human capital as a mean of bargaining chip. The presentation of describing the differences between Dubai and Congo and the management of its resources was key to captivating on bargaining power.
However, personally, I would suggest you to narrow down the subtopics next time and concentrate on something to refer to when you mention the importance of bargaining power. For example, what is the meaning of bargaining power? Would you be referring to the oil resources, their military operations, or perhaps their GDP? 40041596German has mentioned this in his comment and I really think it's a great contribution to further improve in the coming blog assignments. Good Luck!
I feel surprised about your team's point of view. Most people would think that the ageing people are the burden of the society as they have no productivity to the community after their retirement and they would cost a lot to the government such as the medical cost and housing cost. In Hong Kong, there is a serious problem we are facing as the birth rate is quite low comparing with the ageing rate. And I believe that our government is doing "something" with this problem although I can't see the consequences at this moment.You guys had pointed out the possitive aspects about this problem, it can create business opportunities to the society and enrich our culture. Yes, I agree that we sometimes should think of an issue possitively but I think this problem would be not such optimistic since it will impact our next and future generations. Let say the ageing people is increasing fast but the birth rate remains unchange, then who can help to settle the ageing problems? Tax income will be less and less with less young labor, the government would take up a heavy burden to those elderly but where comes the money? Business opportunities created by the ageing but would it be a good solution to this problem?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, your team did a great job about this topic!
Hi Benga,
ReplyDeleteRegarding your post about the ageing population, you have placed quite a lot of emphasis on healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry. I believe that improved healthcare services has definitely contributed to the ageing population, however in many third world countries such as Africa, millions of people are still out of reach from good health care services or cannot afford to buy drugs due to western pharmaceutical companies whom patent their drugs to preserve their own profits. Millions of Africans are dyeing from HIV and aids which could be simply treated, but due to the fact that western countries are selfish enough to reap high profits from these drugs rather than save lives, do you think western pharmaceutical companies are to blame for obstructing the ageing population in third world countries?
Hi,Benga!
ReplyDeleteI like the structure of your blog. It is clear and easy to understand.You talked about the implications of aging population in two industries.I think the part explaining how aging population will influence travel industry is very interesting.As more and more people grow old, the demand of consumers will change.For most companies,aging population is a very important social factor which will influence the way they do business.In some industries, people have seen the opportunities of new business and began to explore new markets.I'd like to share with you an example in cosmetic industry. Aging population is a serious social problem in Japan now.Since the majority of the country's population is old people, consumers aged above 50 have made up a big market.In this situation, Japanese cosmetic companies saw the big market and consumers' new demand. They launched new products which target on women older than 50.These new products meet customers' needs and sold quite well in Japan.
So we can see from your blog and my example, aging population means consumers' taste is changing.For international management, aging population will bring both challenges and opportunities.When doing business in different countries,managers should think about the changing population of different age groups to see whether there is a need to do some modifications to their products or to launch new products in order to meet the demand of market better.
It is an interesting concept. It seems to me however, that you have analysed current situations, without explaining the impact that globalization seems to have had on the bargaining power of nations.
ReplyDeleteI believe that another interesting topic area could include colonialism as it is one of the original forms of globalization. This concept would also back-up your stance on the matter as bargaining power was definitely not equalized through this.
Despite this idea however, each country started with it's own natural resources and specialities before the growth of globalization. When considering globalization, you would think that those nations with the most specialization and abundance of raw materials would flourish more than those nations with less.
As a result of this, does globalization perhaps only enhance and magnify the previous bargaining power, but on a larger stage?
40040305
ReplyDeleteHas Globalization enabled equal bargaining power among countries?
It is an interesting concept. It seems to me however, that you have analysed current situations, without explaining the impact that globalization seems to have had on the bargaining power of nations.
I believe that another interesting topic area could include colonialism as it is one of the original forms of globalization. This concept would also back-up your stance on the matter as bargaining power was definitely not equalized through this.
Despite this idea however, each country started with it's own natural resources and specialities before the growth of globalization. When considering globalization, you would think that those nations with the most specialization and abundance of raw materials would flourish more than those nations with less.
As a result of this, does globalization perhaps only enhance and magnify the previous bargaining power, but on a larger stage?