O que é o liberalismo?

When countries reach per capita income levels of US$10,000 to US$12,000, they seem to get stuck and cannot advance above US$15,000/US$20,000. This can be seen in more than a dozen countries in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. The question remains: why is the market mechanism itself unable to make these countries continue advancing and enter into "convergence," as economists say? The best answer I have found to date is that the international market structures for goods and services produced by rich countries are oligopolistic and monopolistic (see Reinert 2017, How Rich Countries Got Rich). They exhibit high economies of scale and scope, learning curves, sunk costs, and great brand power. Therefore, it becomes very difficult for companies from emerging middle-income countries to gain a foothold in these markets. When we look at the productive structure of a middle-income country, we realize that they are only capable of producing unsophisticated and uncomplicated goods and services. In world trade, rich countries dominate oligopolistic niches of intangible goods and services with very high technological content and added value. Middle-income countries try to penetrate these markets but rarely succeed. Established companies defend their positions very well. This complex range of products and services always exhibits characteristics of imperfect competition. Products change, but some countries/companies always manage to remain in these sectors. Competition is dynamic there too, of course. But after the rich manage to dominate the new high-tech products, they always remain on this sophisticated frontier. Post on the topic: https://www.paulogala.com.br/por-que-...