Does every open economy profit from economic globalization? Why do some countries profit more than others? What role does national economic policy play with regard to a nation´s potential to profit from economic globalization? Is there a need for an international harmonization of e- nomic policy in order to protect global competition and to prevent inter- tional conflicts or, to the contrary, is national economic policy a crucial and indispensable instrument for fostering the international competiti- ness of an economy? These questions were the starting point for a research project of the - partment of Economics at the University of Nuremberg in 2003. The int- tion was to take a fresh look at the various harmonization claims which have been raised both in economic literature and by politicians. As poli- cians, in general, simultaneously also strive for enhancing the international competitiveness of their nation, the project aimed at the relation between harmonization claims on the one hand and the competitiveness debate on the other. The decision to set the focus of this project on the role of competition policy has been triggered against the background of the ongoing debate on international competition rules. In October 2001, the International Com- tition Network (ICN) has been established in New York. Furthermore, the Doha Ministerial Declaration of November 2001 envisaged WTO negot- tions on international competition rules.