Statistical cluster techniques are applied in the development of two new taxonomies of manufacturing industries. The first focuses on the distinction between exogenous, location dependent comparative cost advantages, such as the relative abundance of capital or labour, and endogenously created...

Much emphasis on the sectoral perspective in economics originates in the observation of the diverse and contingent nature of competitive behaviour, where a firm's performance depends on the capability to match its organisation and strategy to the technological, social and economic restrictions...