AP HuG Unit 7 Modules 56-58

Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM)

A measurement of gender equality that includes the proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments, the percentage of women in economic decision-making positions, and women's versus men's share of earned income

gender parity

A way of documenting progress toward gender equality using measures such as relative access to education, average incomes for women versus men, and workforce participation

microloan

A very small loan to people with little income or collateral intended to help them establish or expand a small business

mercantilism

A theory of trade stating that each country strives to export more than it imports in order to accumulate wealth

protectionism

Trade rules that restrict imports in order to protect domestic industries

absolute advantage

A country's ability to produce a good or service more efficiently than another country

comparative advantage

A country's ability to produce one product much more efficiently than it can produce other products within its economy

complementarity

A measure of how well one country's export profile matches another country's import profile

transnational corporation (TNC)

A firm with the power to coordinate and control operations in more than one country, even if it does not own those operations

competitive advantage

A firm's relative ability to outperform other TNCs in its industry

neoliberalism

A range of pro-market and antigovernment positions on the economy, such as reducing government ownership and regulation and promoting privatization and market-based solutions

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

International organization that seeks to foster global monetary cooperation, achieve financial stability, facilitate international trade, and promote sustainable economic growth

World Bank

An international financial organization that provides funding and expertise to promote sustainable economic growth in developing countries

World Trade Organization (WTO)

An international organization that regulates trade among 184 member states, providing a framework for negotiating trade agreements and resolving trade dispute

free-trade agreement

A treaty between two or more countries that reduces tariffs and promotes foreign investment

tariff

Tax on imported goods and services

customs union

A free trade agreement among two or more member countries, combined with a single, common external trade policy for nonmembers

Mercosur

Spanish acronym for the Southern Common Market, a South American customs union that includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay as its full members

Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)

An international trade agreement designed to regulate the output of oil

trade embargo

An official ban on trade with a specific country or of a specific good

financial market

Marketplace where financial instruments are traded; stock markets, bond markets, and foreign exchange markets are all financial markets

debt crisis

Occurs when a government's debts exceed its tax revenues to the point that it cannot meet its loan payments

import substitution industrialization (ISI)

An economic development policy intended to replace imported goods with domestically produced goods as a way to spur industrialization and reduce dependence on other countries

Fordism

The economic and social arrangement based on the mass production of standardized goods, high labor union membership rates, stable and full-time manufacturing employment, and high factory wages that enable mass consumption

corporate disinvestment

A process in which companies stop investing in factory construction, equipment, and improvement and begin selling off assets, such as machinery, buildings, and land

offshoring

The transfer of part of a firm's internal operations to a third party

deindustrialization

The decline, and sometimes complete disappearance, of employment in the manufacturing sector in the core's industrial centers

special economic zone (SEZ)

Specific area within a country's borders where business and trade laws are different from those in the rest of the country

export processing zone (EPZ)

Industrial zone with special incentives to attract foreign investment to places where imported materials undergo processing or assembly before being re-exported

free-trade zone (FTZ)

Specially designated duty-free area that provides warehousing, storage, and distribution facilities for goods intended for trade or re-export

new international division of labor

The spatial shift of manufacturing from developed countries to developing countries, including the global scaling of labor markets and industrial sites

post-Fordism

The shifts from manufacturing centers to spatially dispersed production sites, from standardized mass production to specialized batch production, and from a permanent workforce to temporary and contract workers

just-in-time manufacturing (JIT)

The production of small batches of goods as needed by customer demand

high-technology industry

An industry that develops and uses the most advanced technologies available and has the highest levels of research and development

agglomeration economies

Occur where firms cluster spatially in order to take advantage of geographic concentrations of skilled labor and industry suppliers, specialized infrastructure, and ease of face-to-face contact with industry participants

multiplier effects

The creation of new business and jobs in other industries as the result of investment in a different industry

growth pole

Geographically pinpointed center of economic activity organized around a designated industry, commonly in the high-tech sector