We propose two indexes to measure the agglomeration forces acting within and between different regions. Unlike the existing measures of agglomeration, our model-based indexes allow for simultaneous treatment of both aspects. Local plant diffusion in a given industry is modelled as a spatial...

Economic geography and the new urban theories create an original analytical framework in spatial economics in order to study location issues within an environment of increasing returns and imperfect competition. Two research topics are related : the first one wonders when a symmetric...

In this paper we build an economic geography model where firms sell product varieties with heterogenous demands. We show that firms selling the products with higher demands select to set up their plants in larger countries. Larger countries do not only get better access to more varieties but...

Economic disparities between the regions of the European Union are of constant concern both for policy and economic research. In this paper we examine whether there are overlapping trends of regional development in the EU: overall convergence on the one hand and persistent or even increasing...

This paper presents a New Economic Geography model of structural change, agglomeration and growth. By assuming the same non-homothetic preference structure as Murata (2008), we obtain similar results in that a progressive reduction of trade costs allows the economy to pass from a...

This paper studies how firm heterogeneity in terms of productivity affects the balance between agglomeration and dispersion forces in the presence of pecuniary externalities through a selection model of monopolistic competition with endogenous markups. It shows that firm heterogeneity matters....

Geographical clusters are in the focus of a large breadth of literature and have been discovered as a preferred policy tool by policymakers around the world. The vast literature suggests differing explanations for the advantages clusters offer to constituent firms. Yet not all of these...

Cluster policy has become a method of choice for economic policymakers in many nations and regions in both industrialized and developing countries. Since the beginning of the 1990s, the policy is being perceived by politicians and practitioners as a way to anchor economic activity in locations...

This paper studies how firm heterogeneity in terms of productivity affects the balance between agglomeration and dispersion forces in the presence of pecuniary externalities through a selection model of monopolistic competition with variable mark-ups. It shows that firm heterogeneity matters....

Attention of regional economic convergence has a great place in economics literature. The application of spatially explicit methods of data analysis to the convergence question has yielded important insights on regional economic growth. The literature on regional income inequality, although...