The latest period of expansion in the international economy has been characterised by the liberalisation of capital movements, the deregulation of major financial markets and the spread of neo-liberal beliefs in the merits of open and competitive trade, the disadvantages of big government and protectionist policies (Hirst, 1997). The rapid advancement of information and communication technology and the growth of knowledge-based economy have led to the gradual replacement of the conventional resource-based economies. ‘A techno-economic paradigm of information and communications technology and the knowledge-based economy has created a new knowledge-elite class that favours free markets in this post-industrial society, characterized by globalization, decentralization, deregulation and privatization’ (Low, 2003: 30–31).