We assess the empirical literature on the determinants of spatial variations in new-firm formation rates by undertaking a systematic empirical analysis of the relative roles of different demand- and supply-side factors. Using instrumental variables to address endogeneity, we find that local...

According to the hypothesis of our study there is a close relationship between the standard of economic development and the scale of internal spatial disparities. Central in our applied theory is that the first phase of capitalist economic development is characterised with an initially fast and...

In explaining the uneven spatial distribution of economic activity, urban economics and new economic geography (NEG) dominate recent research in economics. A main difference between these two approaches is that NEG stresses the role of spatial linkages whereas urban economics does not do so. We...

According to the hypothesis of our study there is a close relationship between the standard of economic development and the scale of internal spatial disparities. Central in our applied theory is that the first phase of capitalist economic development is characterised with an initially fast and...

Knowledge drives the growth of nations and regions in a competitive space-economy. Hence, we would expect a strong correlation between investments in R&D, knowledge and learning processes, on the one hand, and productivity increases, on the other. However, the empirical evidence shows consistent...

Europe as we know it, the European Union of 27 countries, has evolved from the European Coal and Steel Union of a few developed countries in a comprehensive economic and political union, which now embraces and unites most of the European continent (EU 2011). Each successive transformation and...

The aim of our analysis is the evaluation of the total and sectoral convergence of labour productivity between 182 regions of EU12 in the period 1991-2006. The selected sectors are agriculture, manufactory, market and non-market services. We adopt a β- and sígma-convergence approach along with...

The main objective of the study is to analyze the most important determinants of monetary poverty (at macro-level) in the Western EU countries taking into account the effects of regional spillovers. According to the latest estimates over 16 per cent of the EU citizens are poor (based on monetary...

The paper aims to assess the evolution of the development disparities (output, employment, overall and by sectors) in the regions and counties of Romania. Using classic and spatial shift-share analysis tools, we investigate the extent to which the existing interregional and, especially,...

Development gaps are a common feature throughout the regions of the European Union, and Romania is no exception. Despite all the political and financial efforts, the convergence process is lengthy and complex, and the gaps with the deepest economic and social roots are the most difficult to be...