Globalisation, Poverty and Inequality:
Friends, Foes or Strangers?
Ken Henry
Secretary to the Treasury
Address to the 2002 Economic and Social
Outlook Conference
Melbourne, 4 April 2002
Chart 1: Three Waves of Globalisation
Source: World Bank, Globalization, Growth and Poverty : Building an Inclusive World
Economy, p 23
Department of the Treasury
Chart 2: Sector shares in developing
country exports
Source: World Bank, Globalization, Growth and Poverty : Building an Inclusive World
Economy, p 32
Department of the Treasury
Chart 3: Developing country globalisers
(3 billion) and non-globalisers (2 billion)
Source: World Bank, Globalization, Growth and Poverty : Building an Inclusive World
Economy, p 5
Department of the Treasury
Chart 4: Inter-country inequality: 20th
century, and last 30 years
Source: Treasury: Global Poverty and Inequality in the 20th century: Turning the Corner?
2001, p 15
1900 and 2000 (42 countries)
Department of the Treasury
1965 and 1997 (115 countries)
Chart 5: Numbers in poverty
Source: World Bank, Globalization, Growth and Poverty : Building an Inclusive
World Economy, p 8
Department of the Treasury
Chart 6: Exports and imports as a share
of GDP, 1901-2000
Source: RBA Preliminary Annual Database and ABS Cat No 5206.0
35
Per cent
Per cent
Export Ratio
30
Korean War Commodity Boom
35
30
Import Ratio
25
25
20
20
15
15
10
10
5
1900-01 1910-11 1920-21 1930-31 1940-41 1950-51 1960-61 1970-71 1980-81 1990-91
Department of the Treasury
5
2000
Chart 7: Wages and employment
growth by skill level of occupation
Source: EPAC, cited in Dawkins and Kenyon: Globalisation and Labour
markets: Implications for Australian Policy
Wages 1986-1995
Employment 1986-1994
Employment growth
(per cent)
Wages growth
(per cent)
25
60
20
55
15
50
10
45
5
40
0
High
Department of the Treasury
Middle
Low
High
Middle
Low
Chart 8: Australian trade integration still
relatively modest
Source: Feenstra, cited in Dawkins and Kenyon: Globalisation and Labour markets:
Implications for Australian Policy
Ratios of merchandise trade to merchandise value-added (per cent)
Country
Australia
Canada
Denmark
France
Germany
Italy
Japan
Norway
Sweden
United Kingdom
United States
Department of the Treasury
1890
27.2
29.7
47.4
18.5
22.7
14.4
10.2
46.2
42.5
61.5
14.3
1919
35.6
39.4
66.2
23.3
29.2
21.9
23.9
55.2
37.5
76.3
13.2
1960
24.4
37.6
60.2
16.8
24.6
19.2
15.3
60.0
39.7
33.8
9.6
1970
25.6
50.5
65.9
25.7
31.3
26.0
15.7
73.2
48.8
40.7
13.7
1980
32.4
65.6
90.0
44.0
48.5
43.1
25.8
70.9
72.9
52.6
30.9
1990
38.7
69.8
85.9
53.5
57.8
43.9
18.9
74.8
73.1
62.8
35.8