HECOL441 Study Guide - Winter 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Economy Of China, World Trade Organization, Canada
12 Oct 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
HECOL441
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
movement up the economic ladder generally starts here
tariffs may be imposed that make it more expensive to export
globalization viewed from:
•political/ government perspectives
•economic/ business perspectives
•social/labour perspectives; including environmental and
economic sustainability
projected a decline for the first time in the industry, could be
a number of factors such as economic conditions or the rise
of online shopping
Why Study?
apparel is one of the oldest and largest export industries in the world and is still expanding
apparel industry is a springboard for national development and employs tens of millions of
workers, often in the poorest countries
global expansion of the apparel industry is driven by trade policy - this has implications for
production, sales, and consumption in the developed world
Global Industry Perspective
apparel and textiles sector hugely affected by globalization - complex relationships are
constantly evolving
China has the world’s dominant position in the apparel, household textiles, and shoe
manufacturing industries - the decisions that China makes are important
PEOTUS Trump does not think China should have this dominant position anymore - threatening
tariffs of a range from 30-45% on things that enter the US
Impact of Global Production
while Asia, particularly China, has enjoyed a dominant position in shoes, apparel and household
textiles manufacturing for several years, makers of these items in developed nations (US,
Canada) have suffered a long period of decline
for example, over 98% of the shoes sold in America each year are imports, and the majority of
these imports come from Asia
to consume in Europe and North America, the growing reliance on Asia as a low-cost producer
has meant very low retail prices for goods of reasonable quality
as a result of this, in exporting and importing, the developing world is becoming more affluent,
and we as consumers have very low price clothing
A Human Ecology Perspective?
a focus on individual, family, and community well-bring translates into concerns about:
•ethical work practices and working conditions in developing world especially for women and
children
•consumption behaviour in developed world and implications for sustainability
Where am I Wearing?
we know from out own experiences as consumers that our clothing comes from around the
world - will this change? are there new opportunities for local production?
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
more likely more chance for local production for niche products with smaller runs rather than
mass produced clothing
Global Trade Values
according to the newly released World Trade Statistical Review 2016 by the WTO, the current
dollar value of world textiles and apparel experts totalled $291 billion and $445 billion
respectively in 2015, but decreased by 7.2 percent ant 8.0 percent from a year earlier
this is the first time since 2009 financial crisis that the value of world textiles and apparel grew
negatively
what are the major disrupters?
the thought that millennials are spending their money on experiences
demographics in general - demand for older groups decline because their activities change,
people are having less kids
economic and political activities - Brexit, loss of jobs, consumer confidence
technology - allowing for cheaper/unit production then the number of things people are buying
might be increasing but the dollar value is cheap
consumer demand has become so important and have so much choice that if they aren’t happy
they just stop buying - over saturation of apparel retail in North America
Impact of Environmental Factors
WTO says that falling prices for oil and other primary commodities, economic showdown in
China, a severe recession in Brazil, strong fluctuations in exchange rates, and financial volatility
driven by divergent monetary policies in developing countries are among the major factors that
contributed to the weak performance in world trade
elections of new prime ministers in GB, Germany, etc.
Primary Global Players
Textiles:
China, the European Union and India remained the top three exporters of textiles in 2015
Altogether, they accounted for 66.4% of world exports
Apparel:
top three exporters of apparel include China, the EU, and Bangladesh
altogether, they account for 70.3% of world exports
despite issues with labour issues and working conditions, the apparel industry is a huge source
of income for Bangladesh
Who Buys all this Stuff?
The European Union, the US and Japan remained the top three importers of apparel in 2015
size of population
•consumers’ purchasing power - often measured by GDP per capita
•size of the population
altogether, they accounted for 59% of world imports, but down from 78% in 2000
this indicates that import demand from other economies, especially some emerging markets,
has been growing faster over the past decade Brazil has accumulated a considerable increase
of share int he market as the middle class grows and theres an increase in the interest in
fashion - more affluent
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
