Deglobalization is often described as the world stepping back from the habit of deep economic interdependence. It is not the end of trade or...

Deglobalization is often described as the world stepping back from the habit of deep economic interdependence. It is not the end of trade or travel, but a shift in mood and policy, from openness to caution, from efficiency to control. Instead of assuming that global links will keep expanding, governments and firms increasingly treat cross border ties as potential vulnerabilities. Supply chains become security stories, investment becomes a strategic choice, and cooperation competes with suspicion.

The International Monetary Fund warns that policy driven geo economic fragmentation can disrupt the channels through which globalization delivered gains. When trade becomes constrained, when migration is politicised, when capital flows are screened, and when technology diffusion slows, the costs do not stay in one sector. [I] They spread through prices, productivity, and innovation, and they weaken the provision of global public goods that require coordination. The result is not a clean break but a gradual thickening of borders, where rules multiply, frictions rise, and trust becomes harder to sustain.

In practice, deglobalization often shows up as a preference for alignment. Firms redesign sourcing to reduce exposure to single points of failure, while states use industrial policy, export controls, and investment reviews to shape who can buy, sell, and build. [II] The language is rarely about separation; it is about resilience, strategic autonomy, and risk management. Yet the same tools can produce unintended consequences, because diversification is not the same as duplication, and insulation can quietly trade flexibility for cost.

The IMF’s message is that fragmentation is a choice with complex side effects, not a simple cure. [III] That means strengthening multilateral rules where possible, keeping channels open for knowledge and finance, and treating cross border links as assets to govern rather than liabilities to erase. [IV] Deglobalization, in this sense, is less a sudden collapse than a test of whether societies can balance security with the long, patient work of cooperation.

[Adapted from https://www.imf.org/en/home]

Question 31: Where in the passage does the following sentence best fit?

Managing risk still matters, but the goal should be smarter interdependence, not reflexive retreat.

A. [I]         B. [II]         C. [III]         D. [IV]

Question 32: The phrase "points of failure" in paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to __________.

A. moments of success        B. stages of production        C. sources of weakness        D. types of investments

Question 33: According to the passage, which of the following is NOT mentioned as a consequence of geoeconomic fragmentation?

A. The deceleration of technological sharing across borders.

B. The politicization of the movement of people between nations.

C. The complete cessation of international travel and tourism.

D. The increased difficulty in maintaining international trust.

Question 34: The word "they" in paragraph 2 refers to __________.

A. global gains        B. the costs        C. capital flows        D. public goods

Question 35: Which of the following best summarizes the main content of the second paragraph?

A. The IMF suggests that globalization is an irreversible process because prices and innovation are naturally protected from the effects of migration and trade constraints.

B. Geoeconomic fragmentation, driven by policy shifts, negatively impacts various sectors and creates practical barriers that hinder global cooperation and productivity.

C. Global public goods are currently being strengthened by the thickening of borders as countries find new ways to coordinate their rules and increase trade efficiency.

D. The result of fragmentation is a clean break from global links, which allows innovation to spread more quickly through domestic sectors without any coordination costs.

Question 36: The word "thickening" in paragraph 2 is OPPOSITE in meaning to __________.

A. thinning        B. widening        C. strengthening        D. worsening

Question 37: According to the third paragraph, what is a potential drawback for firms and states when they attempt to insulate themselves from global risks?

A. They accidentally achieve duplication, which is the exact same thing as diversification.

B. They use industrial policy to ensure that their language is always about separation.

C. They may lose the ability to adapt quickly in exchange for a higher financial burden.

D. They focus too much on resilience and strategic autonomy, which improves their flexibility.

Question 38: Which of the following best paraphrases the sentence in paragraph 1?

A. Governments and firms have stopped expanding their links because cross-border ties are no longer seen as a source of potential economic growth.

B. Rather than expecting a decline in globalization, firms are now treating their domestic ties as a way to avoid any future security stories.

C. Rather than taking the growth of global connections for granted, authorities and businesses now view international relationships as sources of risk.

D. Cross-border ties are being treated as vulnerabilities only by those governments that refuse to assume that their links will keep expanding.

Question 39: Which of the following can most likely be inferred from the passage?

A. The goal of "smarter interdependence" is to completely erase all liabilities associated with knowledge and finance across borders.

B. Security-focused policies might provide protection but risk undermining the very efficiency that global trade once provided.

C. Multilateral rules are currently being weakened by the IMF to ensure that societies can pass the test of sudden economic collapse.

D. Diversification is a simple cure that allows states to avoid the complex side effects of trade constraints and screened capital flows.

Question 40: Which of the following best summarises the passage?

A. Deglobalization is a sudden collapse of economic interdependence caused by governments who prefer to treat cross-border ties as liabilities to be erased immediately.

B. The current shift toward economic caution requires a careful balance between managing national security and maintaining the benefits of global cooperation and open channels.

C. The International Monetary Fund argues that geo-economic fragmentation is a simple cure for the unintended consequences of diversification and industrial policy reviews.

D. Societies have failed the test of cooperation because they chose to focus on resilience and strategic autonomy rather than governing their assets through screened flows.