It is important not to push too far the view that national markets are giving way to the global market. Significant differences still exist among national markets along many relevant dimensions, including consumer tastes and preferences, distribution channels, culturally embedded valued system and business systems. These differences frequently require companies to customized marketing strategies, product features, and operating practices to best match conditions in a particular country.
The most global of markets are not typically markets for consumer products but markets for industrial goods and materials that serve a universal need the world over. These include the markets for commodities such as aluminum, oil, and wheat; for industrial products such as microprocessors, computer memory chips; for computer software; and for financial assets.