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Innovation trajectories in global value chains (GVCs) can take differentiated pathways. In this article, we address the question: do stylized trajectories emerge from the analysis of countries' relative innovative capacity (IC) and GVC participation? We draw explorative insights from a cluster analysis of 45 countries on the two subsectors of the information technology industry: hardware and software. Our analysis uncovers remarkable differences between hardware and software and across countries. We identify different trajectories and discuss the sectoral specificities that contribute explaining their existence. The association between the strengthening of IC and a deeper insertion in GVCs applies only to a handful of countries and only in the software subsector. The specificity of this association raises questions for future research on innovation trajectories in GVCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The world is in the early stages of a paradigm transition toward a global green economy. In this article, we propose the notion of green windows of opportunity, highlighting the importance of institutional changes in the creation of new opportunities for latecomer development. We emphasize how demand and mission-guided technical change influence the directionality of latecomer development and highlight the important role emerging economies may attain in the global green transformation. We provide important insights regarding opportunities for green development in emerging economies, how these opportunities emerge in different renewable energy sectors and their implications for the global green economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the impact of Outward Foreign Direct Investment (OFDI) on the innovation performance of Indian multinationals by analysing their choice of entry mode (cross-border acquisitions versus greenfield investments) and their international location decisions (i.e. choice to locate in a global city). We rely on an augmented fractional logit estimator for 170 foreign investments in high- and medium-high tech manufacturing sectors in the period 2003 to 2011 and find that: (i) compared to greenfield investments, acquisitions generate more technological opportunities; (ii) location in a global city has a negative impact on the Indian companies' innovation performance; (iii) the positive effect of acquisition decreases if the investment is focused on a global city. These findings should be informative for both firms and government authorities involved in developing going-global strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do emerging-market multinational enterprises (EMNEs) innovate after they have acquired advanced countries' innovative firms and have invested in regions with high innovative capacity? Do EMNEs' absorptive capacity and status positively moderate the relationship between their post-deal innovative output and the innovative capacity of the target firm and/or region? We explore these questions by analyzing the universe of cross-border acquisitions accomplished by Chinese and Indian medium to high-tech firms in Europe (EU28) and the USA during 2003–2011. We find that EMNEs benefit from investing in regions with higher innovative capacities, with the exception of the most innovative hubs where post-acquisition impacts on EMNEs' innovative outputs turn out to be less straightforward than we expected. We also observe that EMNEs are often unable to benefit from innovative target firms, which is also in contrast with our predictions. Hence, we do not find conclusive evidence about the positive impact of EMNEs' investments in developed countries. Rather, we reverse this perspective and argue that it is not just a matter of how innovative the target actors are in the host country, but of whether the investing EMNEs are able to mobilize these actors' knowledge resources and interests to their own advantage. Only EMNEs with strong knowledge bases and high status standing can make it, the rest remain stranded, no matter how innovative their target firm or location is. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates how combining global value chain and innovation system approaches can help to foster an understanding of the possible trajectories that learning and innovation may take in developing countries. Based on the wealth of empirical evidence collected in the special issue, we introduce the notion of the co-evolution of global value chains and innovation systems and outline a framework for investigating the interaction between the two in a dynamic perspective with multiple trajectories. We find that, in some cases, there is an improvement in local innovation capabilities with potentially positive effects on overall competitiveness, while in others there is little progress or even a loss of previous innovation capacity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of emerging economies in the global economy via embeddedness in Global Value Chains (GVCs) is increasing, but their ability to become innovation leaders is less certain. The GVC approach stresses that the inter-firm linkages afforded by being part of a chain are crucial for transferring knowledge. However, their impact on the innovation performance of the developing country firms involved in these GVCs remains controversial and requires more research. The present study provides a systematic review of the literature on developing country GVCs to investigate the learning channels used by local firms, both within (firm level, collective level) and outside of these value chains (i.e. external sources of learning), and the extent to which this activity promotes innovation. We use cluster analysis to classify the cases identified in a literature review to propose a novel typology of local GVC innovators: (a) GVC-led Innovators that achieve high levels of innovation, relying mainly on sources of knowledge within the GVC; (b) Autonomous Innovators whose innovation activity is based on external sources of learning; (c) Marginal Innovators, which constitute the largest group and are characterized by low levels of innovativeness and some use of knowledge available within the GVCs, but scarce use of external sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to deregulation and financial liberalization, Latin American countries have recently undertaken bank restructuring and consolidation processes. This paper investigates firm access to credit in the region, focusing on the role of the credit market structure. Through an empirical investigation based on the World Bank Enterprise Survey, we find that access to bank credit is very heterogeneous. On average, smaller and less productive firms are less likely to apply for credit and more likely to be financially constrained. Besides, a high degree of bank penetration and competition is significantly correlated with a lower probability that borrowers are financially constrained. Finally, foreign banks penetration has a negative effect on access to credit particularly in less developed and more concentrated markets, while it has a positive influence in more competitive and financially developed markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the location strategies of multinational enterprises (MNEs) from emerging countries (EMNEs) in search for regional strategic assets. The analysis is based on a systematic comparison between EMNEs and multinationals from advanced countries (AMNEs) in order to unveil similarities and differences between these two major sources of foreign investment into the regions of the European Union. The empirical results suggest that EMNEs follow a distinctive logic in their location strategies. They are attracted by the availability of technological competences only when their subsidiaries pursue more sophisticated and technology-intensive activities. Conversely, EMNEs share some behavioural similarities with AMNEs in their response to the spatial agglomeration of investments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes to the literature on Chinese and Indian multinationals investing in Europe through an empirical investigation about their identity, their characteristics and the association between their features and their international strategies. The investigation exploits a database, named EMENDATA (Emerging Multinationals’ Events and Networks DATAbase), at the level of the investing firms. In relation to the mode of entry, we find that greenfield investments are a more likely option for large-sized companies. Moreover a high propensity for innovation is associated with a high probability to enter with an acquisition and with technological asset-seeking investments. Finally, high profitability is needed to invest in the EU-core countries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

International collaboration among researchers is a far from linear and straightforward process. Scientometric studies provide a good way of understanding why and how international research collaboration occurs and what are its costs and benefits. Our study investigates patterns of international scientific collaboration in a specific field: wine related research. We test a gravity model that accounts for geographical, cultural, commercial, technological, structural and institutional differences among a group of old world ( OW) and new world ( NW) producers and consumers. Our findings confirm the problems imposed by geographical and technological distance on international research collaboration. Furthermore, they show that similarity in trade patterns has a positive impact on international scientific collaboration. We also find that international research collaboration is more likely among peers; in other words, among wine producing countries that belong to the same group, for example, OW producers or newcomers to the wine industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents several charts depicting information on effect of Foreign Direct Investment on Chinese investor companies and increased productivity of emerging multinational enterprises in China.

The article focuses on the Emerging Multinationals' Events and Networks DATAbase (EMENDATA) analysis related to information on Foreign Direct Investment of global investor companies. Topics discusses include association of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and minority investments with EMENDATA, matching of different international data source like offering of Greenfield investment information from Financial Times Group's service, fDiMarkets, and endogeneity problems faced by investor firms.

Using a new firm-level database, EMENDATA, this paper investigates the effects on Chinese multinational enterprises of Outward FDI (OFDI) into advanced European countries. Propensity score matching is combined with a difference-in-difference estimator to reduce the problems of self-selection of treated firms in foreign markets and to eliminate timeinvariant and unobservable differences between those firms and the controls. The results provide robust evidence in support of the view that China's OFDI had so far a positive impact on domestic activities in enhancing firms' productivity and scales of operation, as measured by assets, sales and employment. Distinguishing among such investments on the basis of entry mode shows that acquisitions facilitate early access to intangible assets but are detrimental to financial performance, whereas greenfield investments have a positive impact on the scale and productivity of Chinese investors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the geography of multinational corporations’ investments in the EU regions. The ‘traditional’ sources of location advantages (i.e. agglomeration economies, market access and labour market conditions) are considered together with innovation and socio-institutional drivers of investments, captured by means of regional ‘social filter’ conditions. This makes it possible to empirically assess the different role played by such advantages in the location decision of investments at different stages of the value chain and disentangle the differential role of national vs. regional factors. The empirical analysis covers the EU-25 regions and suggests that regional socio-economic conditions are crucially important for the location decisions of investments in the most sophisticated knowledge-intensive stages of the value chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The empirical literature on China's outward foreign direct investment mainly relies on aggregate data from official statistics, but the reliability of such data is currently a matter of concern because it does not take account of relevant features such as industry breakdown, ownership structure and entry mode. A novel firm‐level database, EMENDATA, compiled by matching data from several available sources on various types of cross‐border deals and including information on group structure, provides a more accurate picture and enables new empirical analyses of the rapidly increasing presence of Chinese companies abroad. Based on this database, this paper offers a more precise assessment of the geographical and sector specialization patterns of Chinese outward foreign direct investment into Europe and suggests new avenues for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature on gender-based discrimination in credit markets is recently expanding, but the results are not yet definitive and have not been generally agreed upon. This paper exploits a new dataset on Barbados, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago, which provides detailed information about female ownership and management in firms for investigating the existence of a gender gap in access to finance. The evidence presented herein suggests that more precise measures of the gender composition of the firm show that women-led businesses are more likely to be financially constrained than other comparable firms. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Recent years have seen an intense and critical debate about the impact of microcredit on entrepreneurial activities and poor households' welfare. This paper suggests that information asymmetries in the ex post loan arrangement between the microfinance institution and local borrowers could partially explain the limited impact of microcredit. The physical distance separating borrowers from the microfinance institution could be considered as a proxy of agency costs, increasing the costs of monitoring and easing moral hazard. The estimation of the effect of distance on the borrower's self-assessed outcome of a microcredit project in Colombia confirms the presence of moral hazard in the microcredit market, with agency costs increasing with geographical distance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use disaggregated data by country and industry to empirically analyze the host country determinants of Chinese outward foreign direct investment (FDI) for the years 2003 to 2011. Our results suggest that the host-country determinants of Chinese FDI differ between high- and low-income countries. While all Chinese FDI is invariably market seeking, other motivations stand out for differing sectors in specific country groups. The resource seeking motivation is relevant for manufacturing FDI to high-income countries with relatively high fuel abundance, and to low-income countries with primary resource abundance (other than fuels). Differently, the strategic-asset seeking motivation, measured by the level of R&D spending on GDP, only positively and significantly affects Chinese manufacturing and service FDI to OECD countries, while higher education levels are an attraction factor for all investing firms. Natural resource is an important attraction factor for Chinese FDI, not only in resource-related sectors, but also in manufacturing and service sectors. Finally, Chinese FDI tends to follow exports (rather than foster them), especially in service sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we study how globalization impacts on the structure and governance patterns of value chains and on the resilience of local clusters. We study the value chains related to two Basque (Spain) companies in the wind energy industry, Iberdrola and Gamesa, and the local cluster to which they belong. We find that firms within the cluster have different types of relationships with lead companies depending on their competences and the complexity of their products. As a consequence, firms also present different potential for growth and/or resilience: some have the capacity to internationalize their operations and/or shift to the offshore wind market, others are vulnerable to competition from providers in the emerging countries. Against this context, we discuss how the cluster responds to these challenges and the role of policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies have stressed the role played by global pipelines in fostering the growth of clusters and innovativeness. In this article, we develop a formal model to investigate when global pipelines contribute to an increase in local knowledge, depending on various characteristics of clusters such as size, knowledge endowment, and the ease of transmission of internal knowledge. This model is an extension of Cowan and Jonard's () model in which we introduce the concept of cluster and a role for spatial proximity in the diffusion of knowledge. Our results reveal that there is a natural tendency of actors within global pipelines to act as external stars, rather than gatekeepers of knowledge. Global pipelines are beneficial for the accumulation of knowledge only if the cluster is either characterized by a high-quality local buzz or is small and weakly endowed in terms of knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Emerging economies are now becoming more central in global competition. To achieve this, many countries have invested to develop into ‘knowledge economies’. Universities have a role to play in this transformation, both as generators of new knowledge as well as actors that can interact with the local industry and contribute to its innovativeness. This paper explores, using two case studies in the Chilean and South African wine industry, how universities connect international science to domestic industry. It finds that this connection occurs through a few ‘bridging researchers’, who display particular characteristics compared with their colleagues. Bridging researchers are more ‘talented’ than average researchers, both because they publish more in international journals and/or because they have received awards for their academic work. This finding may have significant policy implications, as policies aimed at strengthening the skills of these researchers should be welcomed in catching-up industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amighini A., Leone M. and Rabellotti R. Persistence versus change in the international specialization pattern of Italy: how much does the 'district effect' matter?, Regional Studies. This paper investigates the evolution of specialization patterns for the Italian provinces over the period 1995-2005 by analysing the dynamics of the sectoral distribution in the Balassa index of revealed comparative advantages. The results show that underlying a relatively stable distribution of national comparative advantages over time, there are wide variations in local performance: only a few provinces demonstrate any stability in their specialization over the last decade, with the majority showing decreased specialization. A higher average degree of persistence for provinces with districts is found, but no systematic differences between provinces with or without industrial districts. District provinces show wide variation, with a few concentrating on their past comparative strengths, but many diversifying. [image omitted] Amighini A., Leone M. et Rabellotti R. La continuite contre le changement dans la distribution internationale de la specialisation de l'Italie: dans quelle mesure 'l'effet district' importe-t-il?, Regional Studies. Cet article cherche a etudier l'evolution de la distribution de la specialisation pour les provinces italiennes sur la periode de 1995 a 2005 en analysant la dynamique de la distribution sectorielle au sein de l'indice de Balassa des avantages comparatifs decouvertes. Les resultats laissent voir que de grandes variations de la performance locale etayent une distribution des avantages comparatifs nationaux relativement stable sur le temps: il n'y a qu'une poignee de provinces qui demontrent aucune stabilite de leur specialisation sur les dix dernieres annees, et la majorite montrent une baisse de leur specialisation. Il s'avere une propension moyenne a la continuite plus elevee pour les provinces dotees de districts, mais il ne s'avere aucune difference systematique entre les provinces dotees de districts industriels et celles qui ne le sont pas. Les provinces dotees de districts montrent une importante variation, dont quelques-unes se concentrent sur leurs avantages comparatifs du passe, mais dont beaucoup se diversifient. Differenciation intraregionale Dynamique de la specialisation en exportations Districts industriels Italie Amighini A., Leone M. und Rabellotti R. Persistenz und Veranderung bei den internationalen Spezialisierungsablaufen in Italien: Welche Rolle spielt der 'Bezirkseffekt'?, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag untersuchen wir mit Hilfe einer Analyse der Dynamik der sektoralen Verteilung im Balassa-Index der offenbarten komparativen Vorteile die Entwicklung der Spezialisierungsablaufe fur die italienischen Provinzen im Zeitraum von 1995 bis 2005. Aus den Ergebnissen geht hervor, dass sich hinter einer relativ stabilen zeitlichen Verteilung der nationalen komparativen Vorteile starke Schwankungen hinsichtlich der lokalen Leistungsfahigkeit verbergen: Nur wenige Provinzen erwiesen in den letzten zehn Jahren bei ihrer Spezialisierung als stabil, wahrend die Spezialisierung bei den meisten Provinzen nachliess. Bei Provinzen mit Bezirken wurde ein hoheres durchschnittliches Mass an Persistenz festgestellt, ohne dass aber systematische Unterschiede zwischen Provinzen mit und ohne Industriebezirken gefunden werden konnten. Provinzen mit Bezirken weisen hohe Schwankungen auf, wobei sich einige auf ihre fruheren komparativen Starken konzentrieren, wahrend viele andere sich diversifizieren. Intraregionale Differenzierung Dynamik der Exportspezialisierung Industriebezirke Italien Amighini A., Leone M. y Rabellotti R. Persistencia frente a cambio en la especializacion internacional de Italia: ¿que importancia tiene el 'efecto de las comarcas'?, Regional Studies. En este articulo examinamos la evolucion de los modelos de especializacion para las provincias italianas durante el periodo de 1995 a 2005 analizando las dinamicas de la distribucion sectorial en el indice de Balassa de las ventajas comparativas reveladas. Los resultados muestran que bajo una distribucion temporal relativamente estable de las ventajas comparativas nacionales, ocurren amplias variaciones en el rendimiento local: en los ultimos diez anos solamente una pocas provincias han mostrado estabilidad en su especializacion mientras que una mayoria muestra una disminucion en las especializaciones. En las provincias con comarcas se observa un grado medio superior de persistencia pero no hay diferencias sistematicas entre las provincias con o sin comarcas industriales. Las provincias con comarcas muestran una variacion amplia; algunas se concentran en sus ventajas comparativas previas pero muchas se diversifican. Diferenciacion intrarregional Dinamicas de la especializacion de exportacion Comarcas industriales Italia [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to analyse the nature and extent of knowledge and information networks in an Italian wine cluster. Moreover, the relation between firms' characteristics and the knowledge network structure is also explored. The empirical findings show that knowledge is unevenly distributed in clusters and that networks of knowledge and information differ a great deal in terms of their structure. In fact, knowledge flows are restricted to a tightly connected community of local producers, differing in terms of knowledge assets, innovation behaviour and overall economic performance with respect to the rest of the firms in the cluster. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the second half of the 1990s the Italian economy has experienced a significant slowdown in the rate of economic growth. The “dwarfism” of its manufacturing firms, their specialization in traditional sectors and their organization in industrial districts have been identified by many scholars as major structural weaknesses in the Italian industrial system. Nevertheless, there is a vast and flourishing empirical literature showing that many industrial districts are actually changing in terms of sector specialization, international and innovation strategies and emergence of new forms of enterprise organization. In this paper, we provide a critical survey of the new and different patterns of industrial organization emerging in industrial districts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a critical review of the global value chain (GVC) literature in light of the "technological capabilities" approach to innovation in less-developed countries (LDCs). Participation in GVC is beneficial for firms in LDCs, which are bound to source technology internationally. However, the issues of learning and technological efforts at the firm level remain largely hidden in the GVC literature. We propose a shift in the empirical and theoretical agenda, arguing that research should integrate the analysis of the endogenous process of technological capability development, including specific firm-level efforts, and of the mechanisms allowing knowledge to flow within and between different global value chains into the GVC literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to analyse the main determinants of the adoption and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) and the relationship between ICT and the patterns of innovation in an Italian industrial district. The analysis is carried out on a database of 118 textile enterprises located in Biella, a well-known industrial district specialized in medium to high quality woollen yarns and textiles, that have been interviewed following a structured questionnaire. On the whole, the rate of adoption and use of ICT in Biella is rather low and this confirms the results of other studies on industrial districts that are specialized in traditional sectors. Nevertheless, our analysis also shows that considering ICT as a general technology may be misleading. Instead, it is useful to disentangle the different ICT; in particular, there are significant differences between IT involving production, administration and logistic processes and the communication technologies (CT). Moreover, on a smaller sample of 50 firms we have tested the hypothesis that adoption and use of ICT may positively influence innovation. In this case, we find that different types of innovations, for instance, product, process and organizational innovations, are influenced by very different variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comparing the Korean labour productivity growth in the last two decades with the Japanese and US labour productivity growth, data confirm a process of catching up in several important manufacturing sectors. The paper investigates its determinants using a non-neoclassical model. Investments in skills and capabilities are found to be crucial in explaining this trend. Important policy implications for developing countries are then discussed. In the long run, a targeted education policy with government intervention and a strong emphasis on technical education can give high pay-offs. This conclusion holds in particular when the aim of the country is to compete in the international markets, not along the low road to competitiveness, based on squeezing wages and profit margins, but along the high road (i.e. improving productivity, wages and profits). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the impact of globalization of production on the Italian footwear sector and investigates the structural changes taking place in some shoe districts as they join international production networks. The following questions are discussed: Are Italian footwear districts specializing in particular phases of the production cycle? Is there a trend towards the reduction of activities carried out within districts? Or are different patterns emerging according to the districts' main market segment and to the value chains (e.g. luxury fashion market or mass market) they belong to? The study explores these issues using data on outward processing trade (OPT) collected by Associazione Nazionale Calzaturieri Italiani (ANCI) to analyse the fragmentation of production in the footwear sector at “provincia” level. The available disaggregation of data allows an investigation of the different outsourcing strategies and emerging trends within the district. Two case studies are presented; one on Riviera del Brenta in Veneto and the other on Barletta in Puglia. In the footwear districts investigated, evidence of different international delocalization strategies is found. It is argued that these different patterns of specialization are closely related to the clusters' market position and suggest that these patterns influence the clusters' potential for future competitiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Official statistics record a tremendous diversity in the level and dynamics of the self-employment rate across countries. Such diversity is even more pronounced for developing countries than for industrial countries. In these countries, self-employment figures may represent evidence of the spark of an emerging entrepreneurial class still in its infant stages, or conceal marginal urban manufacturing employment at the mere level of subsistence and disguising actual unemployment in years of economic depression. This paper documents this diversity for developing and developed countries with new empirical evidence, and tests the determinants of this diversity with econometric techniques. Estimates are presented on a sample of 64 developing countries and 19 developed countries in a period from the 1960s through the 1990s. The results generally confirm a negative association between the rate of self-employment and the stage of development: self-employment would tend to disappear with the development process. However, we present evidence suggesting that in some cases self-employment is also related to high value-added manufactured exports, representing a dynamic and emerging form of entrepreneurship. To this aim, self-employment would not be motivated by the desire to evade taxes, but rather an active role of the government may enhance it. The relationships with the development of the financial sector, educational levels, and other cultural factors tend to vary. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on effect of outward Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) on investment firms' performance of emerging and developing countries. Topics discussed include productivity advantages enjoyed by multinational enterprises (MNE's) over other firms, investment of emerging economies' firms in broad to gain competitive advantages and strategic resources and possibilities of exploitation in scale economies due to increased operation scope of MNE's.

RABELLOTTI R. and SCHMITZ H. (1999) The internal heterogeneity of industrial districts in Italy, Brazil and Mexico, Reg. Studies 33, 97-108. Industrial districts have attracted the attention of development economists in the search for new models of industrial development. Many case studies have shown that clustering helps local enterprises to overcome growth constraints and compete in distant markets. However, empirical studies also reveal shortcomings of the industrial district model. This paper shows that, within the districts, there is enormous heterogeneity by size and performance. Even though clustering firms feed on each other, they vary a great deal in the strategies they employ and the growth they achieve. This internal heterogeneity is investigated for three cases: the shoe industries in Italy, Brazil and Mexico. RABELLOTTI R. et SCHMITZ H. (1999) La hétérogénéité interne des zones industrielles en Italie, au Brésil et au Mexique, Reg. Studies 33, 97-108. Les zones industrielles ont attiré l'attention des économistes de développement à la recherche de nouveaux modèles du développement industriel. Nombreuses sont les études de cas qui ont démontré comment le processus d'agglomération aide les entreprises locales à surmonter les contraintes de croissance et à prendre pied sur les marchés extérieurs. Toujours est-il que les études empiriques laissent voir certains points faibles du modèle des zones industrielles. Cet article montre la variation importante au sein des zones de la hétérogénéité en fonction de la taille et de la performance. Bien que les entreprises agglomérées dépendent les unes des autres, elles varient sensiblement pour ce qui est des stratégies qu'elles mettent en oeuvre et de la croissance qu'elles réalisent. On examine la hétérogéne ité à partir de trois études de cas: à savoir, l'industrie de la chaussure en Italie, au Brésil et au Mexique. RABELLOTTI R. und SCHMITZ H. (1999) Die interne Ungleichartigkeit von Industriegebieten in Italien, Brasilien und Mexiko, Reg. Studies 33, 97–108. Industriegebiete haben die Aufmerksamkeit von Wirtschaftswissenschaftlern mit besonderem Interesse in Entwicklungsfragen auf sich gezogen, die auf der Suche nach neuen Modellen der industriellen Entwicklung sind. Viele Fallstudien haben bereits aufgezeigt, daß Kluster den Unternehmen am Orte helfen, Wachstumsbeschränkungen zu überwinden und in entfernten Märkten zu konkurrien. Empirische Studien zeigen allerdings auch Mängel des Industriegebietsmodells auf. Dieser Aufsatz zeigt, daß es innerhalb der Gebiete enorme Unterschiede in Unternehmensgrösse und Leistung gibt. Obschon Firmen in Klustern sich gegenseitig unterstützen, unterscheiden sie sich sehr in den Strategien, die zur Anwendung gelangen, und im Wachstum, das sie erreichen. Es werden drei Fälle interner Ungleichartigkeit untersucht: die Schuhindustrien in Italien, Brasilien und Mexico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of the paper is to draw some conclusions about the capability of the Italian textile-clothing industry to sustain the strong competition of the fast-growing industry in developing countries, through the analysis of some examples of technological and organizational case studies of best practice. Technological and organizational innovations have been adopted as key strategic tools for reviving and maintaining con~petitiveness in international markets. In this paper we have studied a number of enterprises, among the most technologically advanced within the textile and clothing sector and have analysed the impact of the introduction of information technologies on their organizational structure. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Analyzes the collective economic effects deriving from the institutional linkages existing within clusters of enterprises in Italy and Mexico. Key factors characterizing the industrial districts; Concepts of external economies and cooperation effects; Main findings of the empirical investigation on linkages in both countries.

The article focuses on a analysis related to effect of outward Foreign Direct investment on performance of Chinese multinational enterprises in European countries. Topics discussed include increment in productivity and capital endowments registered by Chinese investors, possibility of increment in resource gaining process of firms in the country and domestic firms' internationalization pushed by government strategy's to rise Chinese investment.