Before there were nation-states there were citystates, functioning as the primary units of economic competitiveness. In their book Citistates (1993), Neal Peirce, Curtis W. Johnson and John Stuart Hall argue that the era of city-states has been reborn. They suggest that "the reasons for this reemergence lie in a remarkable confluence of events. Telecommunications has become globd ,and instant. With access to an international airport, goods can be moved between any two continents in a single day Trade barriers are crumbling, opening distant markets, forcing inefficient manufacturing out of business." (p.1) In the wake of these and other changes, "it has become increasingly clear that preoccupation with macroeconomics at the nation-state level may not be particularly productive, that national economies are, in fact, constetations of regional economies, each with a niajor city at its core, each requiring specific and customized strategies." (p.2) Other analysts, such as Kenichi Ohmae in Borderless World (1990), and Rosabeth Moss Kanter in World C h s (1999, draw similar conclusions.
There are three trends which together characterize the emerging economy.
Globalization of Production. This development is well illustrated by current practices in automobile manufacturing
Today different components of the same car may be made on several continents depending on where the best economies of labor and materials can be found
Globalization of Consumption.
Consumers have a wider range of products from which to choose and, with the lowering of trade barriers, less restrictions in choosing their preferences For example, the elimination of tariff barriers in Europe makes it reasonable for an individual purchasing an automobile to consider whether prices for the same model are better in Spain, France, or Germany Globalization of Capital. Just as consumers are increasingly free to purchase products wherever they find the best prices, those with capital to invest are increasingly free to make their investments where they yield the best returns.