Today's world economy is not really a global economy. It has coalesced around three well-integrated regional economies: East Asia, Western Europe, and North America. Countries like Korea, Poland, and Mexico have relatively large populations and high levels of GDP per capita but are nonetheless much smaller than the dominant core countries in their economic zones. They can merge into the cores, but to do so they must match core economies in fixed infrastructure and domestic consumption - writes Salvatore Babones, CIR's associate, in his comment "National Upgrading in a Regional World".

It could be only achieved through tax revenues and devaluation, which demands implementing socially unpopular policies. But it would be beneficial for the countries like Poland in the long run - adds Babones.

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