1. The fact that United States has become a consumer nation, rather than one that manufactures has also contributed to globalization.  When President Clinton gave more support to the North American Trade Agreement, the textile industry, founded in the South, virtually ended in America and opened trade with several countries, including Vietnam, Nepal, and such.

2. The lower prices for which products can be bought from other countries strongly contributes to global trade, also.  Certainly, after President Nixon opened trade with China, the consumption of products less expensive thab in the U.S. began.

3. Another factor that immensely contributed to the increase in globalization is the ease with which trade can be conducted now.  After the cancelling of the gold standard in the U.S. in 1971, money was printed and it flowed overseas to pay debts.  This ease of transfer of money certainly expedited trade, etc. Nowadays, electronic transfers of money have replaced slower methods.  Transaction among countries are much easier, also, since the Euro has been accepted as currency in the continent of Europe.  With a common unit of money, the value of products can easily be ascertained, so that countries can quickly make judgments regarding trade and business. Access to the value of the yen, or other units of money can be completed with ease. as well.

I will list one very important one from my point of view, and that of many editors here at e-notes! A major influence on globalization has been the ability for skilled and talented hardworking people (such as the editors here!) to work from home anywhere in the world to help others and to earn a modest amount for so doing. The power of the internet has empowered many to work in the global marketplace sharing knowledge, educating others or even trading online. Even language need not be a barrier in this new virtual age - we have page translators not only on our search engines, but also on our iphones and can broadcast our expertise through other digital media such as podcasts and video. It does not matter whether we trade with China, the Middle East or Europe (whether that be through goods on ebay or information on social networking or paid article sites) the whole world is truly now our oyster in theis great new age of globalization.

In my opinion, the most important factors that have been fueling globalization are:

1. The invention and widespread use of container ships.  These ships (especially as they have gotten bigger) can carry huge loads of cargo relatively cheaply.  Because the cargo is containerized, it is extremely easy to load and unload it.  This has reduced costs as well.
2. The invention and widespread use of the internet.  This has allowed globalization of service jobs in much the same way that container ships have allowed the globalization of the production of tangible goods.
3. Decline in world conflict.  For example, China is no longer a Cold War enemy of the West.