1880 - 1914

The second industrial revolution

In Europe and the United States, with innovations in the electricity and oil sectors, the chemical industry, railways and steamboats etc. The second half of the 19th century and early 20th century saw the development of successive innovations that paved the way for significant productivity gains. These included the mechanical production of electricity and the internal combustion engine, the chemical industry, means of communication such as the telegraph and the telephone and means of transport such as railways and steamboats. These means of communication and transport contributed to fostering international trade and propelled industrialized countries into a new episode of globalisation, which ended in 1914. This period is also marked by the emergence of new economic powers such as the United States, Germany and Japan (Meiji era).