MONDAY
TEST WEEK 3
01 THEORY
Regional Economic Integration
02 ANALYTICS
Economic Crisis and Regional Integration
FRIDAY
03 CURRENT AFFAIRS
- | PANEL DISCUSSION — KEY IDEAS
- | SPEAKER PERSPECTIVES — THE CONTRAST
- | DISCUSSION — QUESTIONS
- | LANGUAGE BANK — 10 ITEMS
- | ANALYTICAL TAKEAWAY — COMPARISON → EVALUATION
04 THE WORLD THIS WEEK
ANALYTICAL COMMENTARY OF THE EVENT
Your task: comment analytically on a current socio-political event. Move beyond retelling: explain what happened, why it matters, and what is likely to follow.
THE ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK
EVENT → CONTEXT / CAUSE → SIGNIFICANCE → IMPLICATION → EVIDENCE / WHY
KEY TERMS
| regional economic integration | a process in which two or more countries agree to eliminate economic barriers, with the end goal of enhancing productivity and achieving greater economic interdependence |
| free trade agreement | a pact between two or more nations to reduce barriers to imports and exports among them |
| free trade area | a region in which a group of countries has signed a free trade agreement and maintain little or no barriers to trade in the form of tariffs or quotas between each other |
| customs union | groups of countries that apply one common system of procedures, rules and tariffs for all or almost all their imports, exports and transiting goods |
| common market | a formal agreement where a group is formed amongst several countries that adopt a common external tariff |
| restriction | a limiting condition or measure, especially a legal one |
| influx | an arrival of a large number of people or things at the same time |
| economic union | an agreement between two or more nations to allow goods, services, money and workers to move over borders freely |
| withdraw | to separate formally from membership in a state, union, or other political entity |
| fiscal policies | the use of government spending and tax policies to influence economic conditions, especially macroeconomic conditions |
FOCUS WORDS
| resort to | обращаться за помощью к, прибегать к |
| extension | расширение, продолжение, удлинение, распространение |
| vulnerable | уязвимый, ранимый |
| substantial | существенный, значительный, важный |
| benevolent | благотворительный, доброжелательный |
| stymie | загнать в угол, ставить в тупик, безвыходное положение |
| combat | вести бой, сражаться, бороться |
| capacity | вместимость, мощность, способность, объем |
| promote | способствовать, поощрять, продвигать, стимулировать |
| amplify | увеличивать, расширять; усиливать |
PREPOSITIONS
resort to
in response to
demands for
answer to
suffer from
relative to
owing to
benefit from
deal with
restrict to
GRAMMAR PATTERNS
Globalization survived Brexit and Donald Trump, and it appeared to be thriving even after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Given the potential costs of this shift, it is worth retracing how we got here.
Following the end of the Cold War, globalization brought about a drastic reduction in extreme poverty, not least by enabling East Asian countries, including China, to achieve rapid growth and development.
Most shortages proved to be short-lived
So, the economic “mutual assured destruction” that was supposed to deter deglobalization has apparently reached its limits.
Now, countries are seeking to build resilience by turning inward, embracing industrial policies for sectors that are viewed as critical for national security, such as semiconductors and energy.
So, despite an unprecedented public-health shock, the global economy kept going
The more interconnected countries are, the easier it is for disease to spread among them.