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on Economic Geography |
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Issue of 2023‒10‒30
five papers chosen by Andreas Koch, Institut für Angewandte Wirtschaftsforschung |
| By: | Nilsson, Magnus (CIRCLE, Lund University); Schubert, Torben (CIRCLE, Lund University); Miörner, Johan (CIRCLE, Lund University) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyses the impact of regional anchors on local firms in Swedish regions. Departing from previous idiographic research, we adopt a nomothetic research design relying on a stepwise expert-informed supervised machine learning approach to identify the population of anchor firms in the Swedish economy between 2007 and 2019. We find support for positive anchor effects on the productivity of other firms in the region. These effects are moderated by regional and anchor conditions. We find that the effects are greater when there are multiple anchors within the same industry and that the effects are larger in economically weaker regions. |
| Keywords: | anchor-tenant; productivity; machine learning; anchor firms; Sweden |
| JEL: | D24 O30 R11 R12 |
| Date: | 2023–10–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:lucirc:2023_008&r=geo |
| By: | Lufin, Marcelo; Soto-díaz, Juan |
| Abstract: | When should a policymaker promote economic diversification in resource-rich regions? What are the necessary structural economic conditions for such policies to work? How compatible are regional and national strategies of diversification? This study focuses on the general equilibrium properties of policies that aim to diversify the economic structure of regions through productive linkages with the resource sector. Using Chile, a major mineral exporter, as a case study, and exploiting variation induced by the expansion of the mining industry and the commodity prices super-cycle, we analyze how a shock in the resource sector affects other sectors and regions through productive linkages. The results are utilized in simulating the economic conditions under which regional diversification is an optimal strategy for resource-based economic development. Our results support the need for a multiscalar approach for resource-driven economic development policies by showing that optimal outcomes of diversification policies on economic growth are found when policies combine regional, sectoral, and national strategies for development. |
| Keywords: | mining; diversification; productive linkages; technological change; regional development; Mining; Productive linkages; Technological change; Regional development; Diversification; Elsevier deal |
| JEL: | N0 R14 J01 |
| Date: | 2022–09–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:115013&r=geo |
| By: | Campi, Mercedes; Dueñas, Marco |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we characterize the geography of Colombian exporting clusters and analyze how the COVID-19 crisis has affected Colombian exporters. We contribute to the industrial clusters literature by defining exporting clusters with bipartite network analysis and community detection tools. The methodology allows us to empirically detect product clusters, which are compared with an alternative definition of industrial clusters, and to consider the centrality of firms within clusters. Then, we analyze the firms trade margins during the COVID-19 crisis to evaluate whether belonging to an exporting cluster can be a source of resilience for firms. We find that clusters do not automatically lead to higher resilience and that there are differences in how firms react to a crisis within clusters. Identifying the relevant firms characteristics can guide policymakers to activate the mechanisms that generate resilience. |
| Keywords: | exporting clusters;margins of trade;COVID-19;bipartite networks;community detection |
| JEL: | F14 R12 L19 |
| Date: | 2022–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:idb:brikps:12527&r=geo |
| By: | Andrea Ricci; Claudia Vittori; Francesco Quartaro; Stefano Dughera |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we investigate the relationship between local wages and the internal structure of the regional knowledge base. The purpose is to assess if the workers’ compensations are related to the peculiarities of the technological space where they supply their labor services. To test this hypothesis, we apply the concepts of related and unrelated variety to the firms’ patenting activity as to assess if wages grow more in a framework of ‘knowledge deepening’ (generated by firms innovating in related technological domains) or in one of ‘knowledge widening’ (generated by firms innovating in unrelated technological domains). |
| Date: | 2022–03–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ina:wpaper:3475&r=geo |
| By: | Díaz de Astarloa, Bernardo; Tacsir, Ezequiel |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we study the role of a cluster initiative in fostering economic resilience among firms in a local technology cluster in Argentina. We focus on two aggregate shocks that hit the Argentine economy, including first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our analysis is based on interviews with authorities and members of the cluster initiative, local firms, and policy makers, as well as on firm-level administrative tax records. We find that the cluster organization provides members with resources that could foster resilience, including access to specialized human capital, information on business opportunities, and assistance in applying for government support programs. However, while members of the cluster organization appear to be more resilient than non-members, even within the same regional cluster, after conditioning on firm characteristics we find little evidence of a positive association between belonging to the cluster organization and economic resilience. Members of the cluster organization are neither less likely to exit nor adapt by switching their main economic activity and did not show statistically significantly higher revenue growth than nonmembers. Member firms do appear to have been more able than non-members to keep up with tax obligations during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| Keywords: | Cluster initiatives;Resilience;technology clusters;information technology industries;COVID-19 crisis |
| JEL: | R12 D22 D02 |
| Date: | 2022–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:idb:brikps:12557&r=geo |