IGCSE Geography / Globalisation and migration

Globalisation and the global economy

Edexcel International GCSE Geography (4GE1), chapter 8: Globalisation and migration, specification point 8.1a, 8.S1. Free lesson.

Read the revision notes · IGCSE Geography past papers

Globalisation links countries through trade, investment, migration and communication, making them more dependent on one another. World trade has grown, and production and commodity chains show how goods cross borders.

What globalisation means

Globalisation is the process by which the world's economies, societies and cultures become more closely connected and more interdependent. Interdependent means relying on each other. These links form through trade, investment, migration and communication.

How world trade has changed

Trade is exports plus imports. It can be compared with world GDP, the value of everything produced in the world in a year. Trade as a share of world GDP shows how important trade is compared with the size of the world economy. World trade's share of GDP rose overall, from 26% in 1970 to 57% in 2024. It reached 60% in 2008, then levelled off. It dipped to 52% in 2020 before recovering. The rise in trade's share means trade grew faster than the world economy itself.

How production and commodity chains differ

A production chain follows the stages of making one product. A commodity chain follows a product from its raw material to the consumer. Both now cross many borders, and each border crossing counts as trade. A production chain often has a different country at each stage. It shows who makes each part, and where. A commodity chain runs from a farm or mine to a shop. It shows who adds value at each stage, meaning who makes the product worth more.

The iPhone's production chain

The Apple iPhone is made through a production chain spread across the world. Its components come from more than 40 countries, then the parts are assembled and the finished phones are sold worldwide. Processor chips are mostly made in Taiwan, and toughened screen glass comes from the USA. Final assembly is mostly done in China by firms contracted by Apple. One assembly site at Zhengzhou in China had about 200,000 workers in 2022.

How to describe a trend

A trend describes the overall direction of change, supported by figures. Include any change in the rate of change, such as a rise getting faster or levelling off. Do not give reasons when the question only asks you to describe the trend. For world trade, state that its share of GDP rose overall, give the figures for 1970 and 2024, and note that it levelled off after 2008. Two readings alone do not describe a trend. Say what happened between them as well.

More lessons in Globalisation and migration

• What drives globalisation
• The WTO and the IMF
• Transnational corporations
• Why people migrate: push and pull
• Types of migration: medical, sport, tourism and economic
• Winners and losers of globalisation
• TNCs: benefits and costs for the host country
• The impacts of migration
• Six migrations compared
• The growth of global tourism
• Case study: mass tourism on Spain's Costa Blanca
• Geopolitics: how relations between countries shape movement
• Case study: how the UK manages migration
• Making tourism more sustainable
• Case studies: sustainable tourism in The Gambia and Bhutan
• Case study: sustainable tourism in Cyprus