Good news from the World Bank: economists have been too gloomy about the benefits of globalisation. That is the implication of the annual Global Economic Prospects report, published on Tuesday, which focuses on technology diffusion to developing countries.

“Technology” can mean anything from an Intel chip factory to rural electrification, sanitation and even the organisation of businesses. Broadly defined in that way, it is the foundation of high living standards. And while Indian and Chinese scientists prosper in the US, very little real innovation happens in the developing world. How technology spreads is what matters.