Globalization is a social phenomenon that occurs on a global scale. This process consists of an integration in economic, social, cultural and political character between different countries.

Globalization comes from developments occurring mainly in the means of transport and telecommunications, making the world "shorten" the distances. In the past, for the realization of a journey between two continents were needed about four weeks, now that time has decreased dramatically. An incident that occurs in Europe came to the attention of Brazilian 60 days later, today the news is disseminated in real time.

The process of globalization has emerged to cater to capitalism and especially the developed countries; so that they could seek new markets, given that domestic consumption was saturated.

Globalization is the most advanced stage of capitalism. With the decline of socialism, the capitalist system became prevalent in the world. The consolidation of capitalism began the era of globalization, especially economic and trade.

Global integration arising from the globalization process occurred due to two factors: technological innovation and the increase in global trade flow.

Technological innovations, especially in telecommunications and information technology, promoted the globalization process. From the telecommunication network (fixed and mobile telephony, internet, TV, fax machine, etc.) it was possible the dissemination of information among companies and financial institutions, linking the markets of the world.

The increase in global trade flow is a major factor in the modernization of transport, especially maritime, therefore most of the business transactions (import and export) occurs. Maritime transport has a high load capacity, which also enables the globalization of goods, ie, the same product is found in different parts of the world.

The process of globalization has narrowed the trade relations between countries and companies. Multinational or transnational contributed to the realization of the process of globalization, considering that these companies have activities in different territories.

Another facet of globalization is the formation of economic blocs, seeking to strengthen the market that is increasingly competitive.