Empirical evidence is increasingly emphasising the positive influence of financial markets on the level and the rate of growth of a country's per-capita income. Theoretically, the rationale for the finance-growth nexus appears to be straightforward: in imperfect economies, financial markets...

The European economy was of central importance for the worldwide economic development. In pre-industrial times all cultures were agrarian with few cities and similar income. This situation changed fundamentally with the industrialisation of Europe, which caused great income differences. This...