Until recently “globalization” was widely regarded as an established fact. National barriers, it was said, were breaking down. As a consequence, supply chains were increasingly trans-national in character and markets were being homogenized. We became very familiar with the idea of freewheeling capital and labour. Furthermore, it was said, globalization offered immense economic benefits through processes of specialization and trade. It was generally conceded that there were of course losers from globalization but, we were assured, those losses would for the most part be short-lived and localized.

Even before Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war, all of these assertions had begun to look very dated. The downsides and risks attached to globalizing processes have come to the fore. This course considers the extent to which it is still reasonable to talk of “globalization”. It draws upon international political economy (IPE) and international relations (IR) and asks core questions. Is industrial policy back in fashion? Will trade wars become more commonplace? Will data sovereignty and cyber-sovereignty become the new normal? Are economic tensions likely to lead to strategic and military tensions?

Furthermore, what are the consequences for different business sectors? Are firms adopting new hedging strategies? How are they adjusting to new limits on labour mobility? Are multinational corporations now reshoring, near-shoring or “friend shoring”? Do particular types of firm “win” in the current climate whilst others “lose”?

The course is of direct relevance to students taking core business programmes as well as those studying politics, international relations, European Business as well as International Business in Asia.