A beginner's guide to the world economy

by Randy Charles Epping

People in Seattle are tear-gassed and thrown in jail for protesting the World Trade Organization. In France, a woman is killed when anti-globalization terrorists blow up a local McDonald's. Companies in New York City are boycotted for not paying their Third World employees enough. Now more than ever economic literacy is essential for anyone who simply wants to follow the nightly news and better understand the world around them, making this easily accessible guide essential reading. This completely revised and updated edition answers such new questions as: What is the New Economy? What exactly is globalization? How is e-commerce more than just a convenient way to shop? What is virtual money, and does it have real value? Is the euro the final seal on the European Union? And what are the consequences of either boycotting or buying Third World products? This user-friendly handbook also explains: free trade, Swiss bank accounts, hyperinflation, the WTO, central banks, stocks, bonds, indexes