Читать книгу The Emerging Markets Handbook - Pran Tiku - Страница 53

Since ancient times, trade has been the primary vehicle by which great nations have risen and prospered. In that sense, little has changed over time, as international trade continues to be a key driver in the growth of emerging market economies. Just as before, nations play to their strengths by offering the goods and services that give them the greatest advantage. Yet today, the dynamics at work – everything from currency depreciation and tariffs to trade pacts such as NAFTA and ASEAN – have led to an environment that is fiercely competitive.

In the recent past, emerging markets were often characterised by what many considered to be unfair trade policies. While this stigma still persists, the fact that most of the emerging markets discussed in this book have become members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) has created a legal mechanism to redress grievances by members. This has made the trade wars of the past much less frequent between states today.

In a recent McKinsey study of 720 companies around the globe (in both developed markets and emerging markets) data from 2227 separate market segments was analysed. It was found that companies in emerging markets could deploy changes at a faster rate, cater to local markets more efficiently and, above all, were far more effective at innovating. This analysis was not subjective; it was on full display in the bottom line. According to the analysis, emerging markets had overall revenue growth rates of almost 24%, while developed markets had growth rates of less than 11%.

As emerging market nations continue to reduce overall imports and increase exports (and increase reserves), they are well-positioned to avoid the fate of the developed world, where payments for imports require high deficits, generosity or optimism of foreign investors, exports, or foreign earnings repatriated by citizens abroad.