This dramatic global economic transition isn’t new. A century ago, Britain was the global industrial, naval and colonial powerhouse, but two world wars and a depression later, dominance had shifted to the United States. Today, the shift is from the U.S. to emerging Asian economies.

This transition has been aided by the actions of the World Trade Organization (WTO), which reduced bureaucratic barriers to trade by lowering trade tariffs between countries. Inexpensive ocean transportation means it’s cheaper to ship a container from China to Vancouver than it is to move it from Vancouver to Halifax, leading to explosive growth in manufacturing economies such as China. The internet and, more broadly, the development of information technology have virtually eliminated the cost of information and knowledge transfer. This has allowed businesses to outsource higher end services, such as accounting, financial analysis, engineering, legal counsel, and even medical diagnosis, to lower cost jurisdictions (think India) where they’re delivered remotely.