Guido Pellegrini

Proximity, Polarization, and Local Labor Market Performances

Recently, a new methodological approach to empirics of economic dynamics based on nonparametric analysis has been proposed. The approach contemplates the presence of mechanisms of polarization and spatial linkage affecting the spatial characteristics of growth that are ruled out by the basic neoclassical approach while being the starting point of core-periphery models. A nonparametric investigation on the geographical distribution of local labor markets performances in Italy is presented, summarized by the employment rate. The analysis provides empirical support to the prediction that the behavior of the entire cross-section distribution of Italian employment rate can be mainly explained by proximity, and therefore by spatial spillover. The analysis is carried out on a very disaggregated territorial level: the area units considered are the 784 Local Labour Systems (LLSs), defined as “travel-to-works” areas by the National Statistical Institute (Istat). The basic idea is that distribution dynamics changes whenever conditioned with respect to spatial closeness of LLSs. I investigated the distribution dynamics of employment rate in LLSs over the 1971 to 1996 period by using transition matrices and the stochastic kernel approach. The results show that the employment rate distribution across LLSs has a strong polarization, but it vanishes if it is conditioned to the closer neighbors employment rate. The analysis suggests that the local labor market performances inside Italy do not present strong territorial discontinuities. This is related to the geographical position of the country with respect to the relevant markets, and it is consistent with the predictions of the core-periphery model.

The Effect of Investment Tax Credit: Evidence from an Atypical Programme in Italy

This paper examines how business investment responds to investment tax credit, as enacted by Italyi?½s Law 388/2000. To assess whether the programme made investments possible that otherwise would not have been made, it exploits some features of the tax credit scheme, such as the fact that some Italian regions are not deemed eligible or that the amount of the bonus differs across eligible regions. Although the programme was fiscally unsustainable, and was therefore downsized well ahead of the expiry date, our findings suggest that it has been effective in stimulating investment.

Caratteristiche delle imprese ed eterogeneità degli effetti degli incentivi alla r&s

Questo lavoro si propone di misurare l’influenza delle diverse caratteristiche di impresa sull’impatto degli strumenti di incentivazione, che puo essere eterogeneo. L’analisi empirica si focalizza sugli strumenti per il finanziamento di progetti privati in r&s in Italia. Vengono sviluppati alcuni strumenti metodologici non parametrici capaci di identificare e sottoporre a test la presenza di eterogeneita degli effetti rispetto ad alcune specifiche dimensioni di analisi. I risultati mostrano che, sebbene nel complesso gli strumenti di incentivazione abbiano avuto un’efficacia modesta, alcune caratteristiche, come l’essere esportatore ed effettuare ricerca intramuros, influenzano in modo statisticamente significativo l’entita degli effetti dell’intervento.