Passage 2
The global economy is becoming more integrated than ever before. A half-century of emphasis on free trade by major industrial countries has resulted in the freer flow of goods, services, and capital among nations. As a result, companies both large and small now view the world, rather than a single country, as their marketplace. Also, companies have dispersed their manufacturing, marketing, and research facilities to those locations around the globe where cost and skill conditions are most favorable. This trend is now so pervasive in industries such as automobiles, aerospace, and electronics that it is becoming increasingly irrelevant to talk about “American products” or “Japanese products”.
Consider what happens when an American consumer buys a car. The engine is produced in France, the storage battery in Japan, the seat belt in Austria, and the body is assembled in Germany. Is it a “German product”? Obviously not — but neither is it a “French product”, a “Japanese product”, or an “Austrian product”. Like an increasing number of the products we buy today, it is an international product.
The increasing integration of the global economy has had many consequences. First, the volume of world trade grows at a faster rate than the volume of world output.
Second, foreign direct investment is playing an ever increasing role in the global economy as companies of all sizes invest in overseas operations.
A third consequence is that imports are penetrating deeper into the world’s largest economies. The growth of imports is a natural by-product of the growth of world trade and the trend toward the manufacture of component parts, or even entire products, overseas before shipping them back home for final sale.
Finally, the growth of world trade, foreign direct investment, and imports implies that companies around the globe are finding their home markets under attack from foreign competitors. This is true in Japan, where Kodak has taken market share in the photographic film industry away from Fuji and in the United States, where Japanese auto makers have captured market share from GM, Ford and Chrysler.
47.Major industrial countries have stressed the necessity of free trade since 50 years ago.
A、True
B、False
【正确答案】：A
【名师解析】:根据文章内容，过去半个世纪以来，主要工业国家一直强调自由贸易的重要性，这导致了商品、服务和资本在国家间的更自由流动。文章提到了全球经济一体化的趋势，以及跨国公司在全球范围内分散其生产、营销和研究设施，以利用不同地区的成本和技能优势。因此，选项A "Major industrial countries have stressed the necessity of free trade since 50 years ago." 正确反映了文章中提到的信息，即主要工业国家在过去50年中强调了自由贸易的必要性。所以答案是A.True。
