A business does not have to manufacture a product to earn revenue from another country. It may already possess something an overseas customer is willing to buy: the ability to improve a process, design a system, develop people, solve a technical problem or make a better commercial decision. A company that has learned how to run efficient warehouses, prepare reliable management reports or train effective service teams has accumulated more than experience.

For several decades, one of the great achievements of global business was the ability to separate production from proximity. A company in Dubai could buy components from East Asia, machinery from Europe, specialist materials from the United States and services from almost anywhere, while modern logistics made those relationships predictable enough to operate at scale.