Most people in Europe think about globalisation in terms of continuously expanding world trade, and the exposure of European enterprises to increased competition. Such concerns are understandable since the European economies are known to be very open - with exports accounting for over 25 per cent of GDP in the bigger Member States, and 40 to 50 per cent or more in the smaller Member States. Concerns are reinforced by the fact that, for many years, economic policies in Europe have been based on the conviction that we needed export-led growth, and that we frequently need to restrain internal demand in order to shift resources to our export enterprises. Such a view of the world has stifled economic progress. We do not live in a zero-sum world.
Trade brings mutual benefits.
The reality is that, despite our continued concerns about global forces, most of the increase in trade that has occurred over the past 3 to 4 decades has been contained within Europe's borders. This chart shows the development of internal trade compared with external trade from 1963 to 1997. In effect, over the life of the Union, Europe has progressed from being a set of relatively independent economies into a large and increasingly integrated economic entity - a Single Market, very similar to the US economy. In effect, Europe has seen a Europeanisation of its trade, rather than a globalisation. That is not to say that Europe can afford to be complacent about its economic performance.