Introduction

This special issue of the Journal of International Commerce, Economics and Policy is dedicated to investigating the globalization of services and its implications for economies. The papers in this issue address various dimensions of the globalization of services, including economic linkages between countries through trade and investment flows, people mobility and outsourcing, protectionism in services, multilateral negotiations in services, the political economy of service sector reforms and the impact of services globalization on the domestic economy. The evidence on some of these dimensions is highlighted by presenting the specific case of the Indian economy where services have been an important growth driver and have facilitated the country's integration with the world market. Together, the papers in this issue aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the issues surrounding the participation of economies in services trade and investment flows from a cross-country, national and sub-national perspective.