Economic Competitiveness: a Theoretical Overview

The complexity of the concept of competitiveness lies in the fact that the term is used in various levels of aggregation, allowing the generation of its different meanings at microeconomic, mezzo economic, and macroeconomic level. Based on the evidence of interdependence and complementarities of economic competitiveness with other terms, such as to induce errors in understanding the phenomenon, this scientific approach aims: the development of conceptual limitations of the term competitiveness, what does competitiveness mean at the firm, industry and national level and accentuation the essential theories of trade, from classical theories such as Adam Smith’s absolute advantage to new theories such as Helpman`s or Krugman`s model and to reveal their influence on international competitiveness.