Paolo Guerrieri

Industrial districts' evolution and technological regimes: Italy and Taiwan

This paper investigates some plausible models of evolution of industrial districts (IDs) and clusters in light of the peculiar current features of technology and technological change. An insightful explanation of the variety of possible evolution of industrial clusters is provided focusing on the concept of ‘technological regimes’. Within this interpretative framework, the authors carried out original field studies and survey questionnaires in Italy and Taiwan to gather microeconomic evidence on the restructuring efforts and sources of competitiveness of selected small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The shift in the technological paradigm, that applies to all sectors, requires a substantial industrial reorganisation. Firms traditionally operating within industrial districts need to reorganise their knowledge linkages from a cluster-based approach to a global and broader approach. A key explanation of the success of SMEs competing in globalized high-tech industries, supported by our survey evidence, is the co-evolution of domestic and international knowledge linkages. Inter-firm and inter-institution linkages need to be built to provide local SMEs with the necessary externalities to cope with the dual challenge of knowledge creation and internationalisation. In Taiwan, this took the form of global production networks.  2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. JEL classification: O32; O33; R12

Trade Openness and International Fragmentation of Production in the European Union: The New Divide?

This paper analyses the relationship between international fragmentation of production, trade openness and global export performance in the European Union from 2000 to 2009. As most trade models featuring international production sharing show, the higher the level of fragmentation and related international openness the better the export performance of a country. Our econometric analysis confirms this hypothesis. We estimate an error correction model based on panel data on the EU Member States and find that inter-European fragmentation and openness significantly improve their long-run export performance. Policy implications could be that restrictive policies preventing firms from internationalizing production would weaken a countryi?½s position in global production networks, with long-term negative effects on domestic jobs and growth.

International Production Networks And Changing Trade Patterns in East Asia: The Case of the Electronics Industry

The concept of an “international production network “ captures the spread of broader systems of international production which cut across different stages of the value chain but which may, or may not, involve ownership of equity stakes. The concept allows us to analyse the globalization strategies of any particular firm with regard to the following four questions: Where does the firm locate the various stages of the value chain? To what degree does a firm rely on “outsourcing”, and hence what is the relationship between that and the firms internal production activities? To what degree is control over transactions exercised in a centralized or in a decentralized manner? How do the different elements of these networks hang together? The ideas are applied to the trade links in electronics between firms located in the USA or Japan and countries of East Asia.

Old and New Forms of Clustering and Production Networks in Changing Technological Regimes Contrasting Evidence from Taiwan and Italy

The selected evidence discussed in this paper suggests three interrelated propositions. First, there is no one best model for organising an industrial district or an industrial cluster, since a diversity of institutional arrangements is possible and each has proved successful in different circumstances. Second, clusters are not cast in iron, but they evolve over time. Third, globalisation reshapes the upgrading options for SME-based clusters, by providing a variety of international knowledge linkages. In a nutshell, globalisation changes both the concept of proximity and the scope of competition: a necessary prerequisite for competitive survival is the capacity to foster the co-evolution of local and global linkages and networks, and to develop new interactive modes of knowledge creation. This paper presents original evidence on Taiwanese and Italian SME-based clusters. A key explanation of the success of SMEs competing in globalised high-tech industries, supported by our survey evidence, is the co-evolution of domestic and international knowledge linkages.

The determinants of investment in information and communication technologies

In this paper, we assess the determinants of information and communication technology (ICT) investment at the macro-level, for a panel of 10 advanced countries, in the period 1992–2005. We investigate the idea that, since ICTs are general purpose technologies, the decision to invest in these technologies is strongly affected by the general business environment in which the investment takes place. The empirical results are consistent with this idea: facilitating factors such as changes in market regulation, amount of human capital, expenditure on R&D, and the share of the dynamic services sector in the economy, positively influence investment in ICT.

The economic impact of digital technologies in Europe

This paper analyses the economic impact of digital technologies in Europe distinguishing between different stages/domains of the digitalization process. A set of composite Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) indicators is used for capturing the access to ICTs, the ability to use them and the digital empowerment of individuals in key social and economic domains. We argue that the mere accessibility to ICT facilities is only a pre-condition for moving towards a digitalized society, while the ‘level’ and the ‘quality’ in the use of these technologies, as well as the conditions facilitating or hampering digital empowerment, play a much more important role. Several transmission mechanisms from ICT access, usage and digital empowerment to key macro-economic variables (namely labour productivity, gross domestic product per capita, employment growth and the employment rate) are identified. The econometric evidence supports our hypotheses showing that the usage of ICT, and mostly digital empowerment, exert the major economic effects, especially on employment also favouring the inclusion of ‘disadvantaged’ groups in the labour market. We conclude that digitalization may drive productivity and employment growth and that inclusive policies may effectively contribute to bridge the gap between the most favoured and the disadvantaged parts of the population, thus helping in achieving the 2020 Europe targets.

Euro-Commentary: The Rise Of ‘Many Mezzogiorni’ An Empirical Assessment of the Internal Differentiation of Italian Southern Regions

The aim of this paper is to provide, using various socio-economic indicators, some empirical evidence of the increasing differentiation which has characterized one of the most studied peripheries of the European Union, namely the Italian Mezzogiorno. The analysis is carried out at province level (NUTS 3) for the period 1985-98. Our results seem to support a growing differentiation of the paths of development within the Italian South that has occurred in parallel with the intensification of the EU integration process, producing an area of ‘many Mezzogiorni’.This means that the use of traditional indicators, such as gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, may not be entirely appropriate and, in some cases, may even be misleading for assessing regional backwardness and vulnerability in a bid to achieve greater socioeconomic cohesion within the EU.The aim of this paper is to provide, using various socio-economic indicators, some empirical evidence of the increasing differentiation which has characterized one of the most studied peripheries of the European Union, namely the Italian Mezzogiorno. The analysis is carried out at province level (NUTS 3) for the period 1985-98. Our results seem to support a growing differentiation of the paths of development within the Italian South that has occurred in parallel with the intensification of the EU integration process, producing an area of ‘many Mezzogiorni’.This means that the use of traditional indicators, such as gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, may not be entirely appropriate and, in some cases, may even be misleading for assessing regional backwardness and vulnerability in a bid to achieve greater socioeconomic cohesion within the EU.

International Competitiveness in Producer Services

This paper investigates the determinants of international competitiveness and specialisation in a group of producer service for a sample of OECD countries during the 1990s. We identified intermediate demand from the manufacturing sector as a strategic variable for international specialisation in producer services. Specialisation in manufacturing sectors that are large users of producer services contributes positively to the export of producer services. Spending in information and communication technologies (ICTs) has also a positive impact on the export of producer services. This supports those theories that emphasise the role of technology in trade performance.

EU's Regional Trade Strategy, the Challenges Ahead

The aim of this article is to investigate the evolution of European Union’s (EU) regional integration policy towards third countries and regions. Several factors changed and are changing the environment, thedeterminants and the scope forwhichRegionalTradeAgreements (RTAs) are negotiated worldwide. A major factor of such development is represented obviously by the globalization process which had a great impact both economically and politically on the world order. Indeed, globalization emphasised for instance the competition

Neomercantilism and international economic stability

In a recent paper, Barry Buzan disputes the widespread theory that associates a liberal international economic structure positively, and a mercantilist structure negatively, with international security. We do not take issue with Buzans arguments on this point; rather we disagree with some of his assumptions concerning the relationship between mercantilistic policies and the international economic order. Those of Buzans points that we question represent generally accepted views in the literature on mercantilism Buzans definition of mercantilism focuses essentially if not exclusively on protectionist trade policies. We prefer a more general definition based on Keynesian and post-Keynesian literature. By including the macroeconomic goals of neomercantilism, this definition accounts for a countrys foreign economic policy.