Problems with Outsourcing Offshore

In the aftermath of the Second World War, the American government announced the Marshall Plan, which was designed to speed up the recovery of the war-devastated nations of Europe. It is widely believed by economists to have been an extraordinary success. There was $13 billion invested in Europe and the tariffs that had hindered their free trade were abolished. A decade after the war, American companies were selling their goods throughout Europe, and the profits those companies earned were in part responsible for the biggest pay raises for American workers in history. The 25 years following the war have been called the “Golden Age of the American economy.” Our former enemies and allies had been helped to regain their prewar prosperity, and they became the customers that American industry needed. Free trade brought great prosperity, and a lesson was learned about the value of “globalization” of trade. Eventually, the success of free trade with Europe and Japan suggested that perhaps the developing world could also become customers.