Speaker: Zhun Xu, Lingnan College, Sun Yat Sen University
Discussant & Moderator: Daniel Vukovich, Department of Comparative Literature, HKU
Date: Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Time: 4:00 pm Hong Kong Time
Venue: Room 436, 4/F, Run Run Shaw Tower
After significant economic and social progress in the 1960s and 1970s, the prominence of the national question in the Third World largely diminished during the era of neoliberal globalization, leading to a decline in the significance of the Third World as a concept. However, the last two decades have witnessed a notable resurgence of national identity in the politics and economies of Third World countries, particularly as the BRICS nations have gained prominence. Our analysis of Third World trade reveals a marked decrease in dependence on the West, with these countries increasingly trading among themselves, both as buyers and sellers. Additionally, we observe that since the peak of neoliberalism, Third World elites have been more intentional in resource allocation and often exhibit a stronger commitment to national development. These developments strongly indicate a resurgence of the Third World on the global stage.
Zhun Xu (许准) teaches economics at Lingnan College, Sun Yat-sen University (中山大学), on leave from the City University of New York. His main research interests include the political economy of development, the Chinese economy, and economic history. He is on the editorial boards of Science & Society and the Journal of Labor and Society. He is the author of From Commune to Capitalism (Monthly Review Press, 2018) and articles in numerous venues, including The American Journal of Public Health, Review of Radical Political Economics, and The Journal of Peasant Studies.
Format: Professor Xu will present his paper as part of his current work in progress on global political economy and the limits to China’s current use of global capitalism/world trade. Professor Vukovich will serve as discussant and moderator for a broad discussion of the global and political-economic conjuncture. As part of the background reading, we are making available brief, classic selections from Marx and Engels on trade as seen from the standpoint of the 19th century. All are welcome to join the discussion.
This event is co-organised by the China, Humanities, and Global Studies (CHAGS) Cross-Faculty Research Hub and the Center for the Study of Globalization and Cultures (CSGC), Department of Comparative Literature, School of Humanities, Faculty of Arts, The University of Hong Kong.
