This remarkable book outlines the historical framework and the main concepts of the literature on industrial districts. It illustrates a new approach to the study of industrial development, based on well-known industrial districts analysis. Giacomo Becattini has written an authoritative volume which, starting with the theory of districts, explores key aspects of contemporary capitalism. The book concludes that industrial districts are not a provisory phenomenon but a variant of the capitalist mode of production, where financial relationships are relatively less important, and inter-human ones play an unusually important role. Such is the basis for their specific competitive advantage. Academics, politicians and students interested in local development and also industrial development will find much to learn in Industrial Districts, as will industrial geographers and historians of industry and of economic thought.

The book explores the evolving economics of gold as a global commodity as well as the production and trade of gold in and from the African continent. The growth of gold as an increasingly important and diverse source of African wealth is examined, alongside the impact that the rise of China in the 21st century has had on the demand for gold. The volatility of the gold price has increased as a result of the dramatic decline of gold demand for manufacturing purposes. Gold is Africa's second largest export after oil and is a perfect metaphor for a continent rich in resources while so much of its population lives in such dire poverty. The artisanal and small scale gold mining (ASGM) sector, is surprisingly widely perceived as being beneficial to the development of Africa despite its exploitation and dreadful health and environmental consequences. African Gold: Production, Trade and Economic Development considers policy issues regarding the gold mining sector, the economics of beneficiation, the retreat of jewelry manufacturing across the continent as well as 'Africa's golden future'. It is a relevant book for both academics and policymakers interested in Africa, natural resource, and development economics.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often have difficulty competing in the global economy unless they collaborate with domestic or foreign partners or with public sector organizations. This book addresses the resource leverage and innovation challenges that increased global trade represents for SMEs. In doing so, it explores how SMEs can become more competitive at home and in foreign markets as stand-alone firms or as members of supplier and customer networks. SMEs are turning increasingly to innovation as a source of competitive advantage in order to protect their home markets and participate in expanding foreign markets. The contributors to this volume - leading experts in entrepreneurship, innovation, and international business - provide in-depth coverage of the most compelling issues facing SMEs. These include: innovation as a competitive strategy, network dynamics, ways to leverage technology, internationalization, and the role of the public sector in helping SMEs to overcome resource deficiencies. This comprehensive look at SMEs in the global marketplace will be of great interest to academics who study entrepreneurship, innovation, or international business, officials from public sector agencies with responsibility for helping SMEs to internationalize and become more innovative, and senior executives of SMEs or executives of larger companies who are considering collaboration with SMEs.

Recent research on the economics of innovation has acknowledged the importance of path dependence and networks in the evolution of economies and the diffusion of new techniques, products, and processes. These are topics pioneered by Paul A. David, one of the world's leading scholars in the economics of innovation. This outstanding collection provides a fitting tribute to the diversity and depth of Paul David's contributions. The papers included range from simulation models of the evolution of market structure in the presence of innovation, through historical investigations of knowledge networks and empirical analysis of contemporary networks, to the analysis of the diffusion of innovations using simulation and analytic models and of the diffusion of knowledge using patent data. With an emphasis on simulation models, data analysis, and historical evidence, this book will be required reading for researchers in innovation economics and regional development as well as economists, sociologists, and historians of innovation and intellectual property.

The capitalist economies of the developed world fall loosely into two highly divergent camps: one in which securities markets are robust and the ownership of large firms is broadly dispersed; the other in which securities markets are weak and ownership is highly concentrated. There is now a lively debate about the role of law in producing these diverse patterns. This volume brings together the foundational contributions to that debate, edited and introduced by one of the key participants. They are a must read for anyone who wishes to understand the relationship between law and the economic structure of modern societies.' - Henry Hansmann, Yale Law School, US 'Mark Roe, one of the world's leading corporate law scholars, here presents a collection of first rate work (including his own) that addresses the deepest puzzle in comparative corporate governance: why is it that stock ownership patterns differ so significantly across countries, even where the stage of economic development is comparable? This volume will be of genuine value to scholars and students interested in comparative political economy as well as corporate law.' - Jeffrey N. Gordon, Columbia Law School, US This insightful volume explores the issue of why some nations have deep securities markets while others do not, and investigates the new hope that securities markets could be the road to wealth and not just the result of it. This collection of key articles, together with the editor's comprehensive introduction, examines the recently emergent theories in the field.

This book suggests that the scope and breadth of regulatory reforms since the mid-1980s and particularly during the 1990s, are so striking that they necessitate a reappraisal of current approaches to the study of the politics of regulation. The authors call for the adoption of different and fresh perspectives to examine this area. The contributors to this volume analyse how regulatory regimes that were once peculiar to the US and a few industries have, in recent years, come to define the best practice of governance over the world capitalist economy and over numerous social and economic sectors. They go on to suggest various explanations for the expansion of regulatory institutions, addressing some of the most critical problems and offering new methodological techniques to enable further study. The contributions also provide distinct cross-national and cross-sectoral comparative approaches, and emphasise the changes in the economic and social context of regulation and the implications of these developments on the rise of the regulatory state. These changes, together with the general advance in the study of regulation, undoubtedly demand a re-evaluation of the theory of regulation, its methodologies and scope of application. This book is a perceptive investigation of recent evolutions in the manner and extent of governance through regulation. Scholars and students of comparative politics, public policy, regulation theory, institutional economics and political sociology will find it to be essential reading. It will also prove a valuable source of reference for those working or dealing with regulatory authorities and for business managers in private industries and services operating under a regulatory framework.

Tackling innovation as an endogenous process, this groundbreaking new book builds upon the Schumpeterian creative response by implementing the tools of complexity economics. This reappraisal of the Schumpeterian legacy allows the author to apply complexity economics to endogenous knowledge externalities and consequently move away from the Darwinistic and biological accounts of evolutionary economics. This approach proves that firms, in out-of-equilibrium conditions, try and react by means of introducing innovations. The success of this reaction is contingent upon access conditions to knowledge externalities. Cristiano Antonelli demonstrates that the consequent introduction of innovations may, in turn, knock firms further out of equilibrium and cause positive changes in the system's properties that feed the introduction of further innovations. In addition, this can also engender the decline of the system's properties and push firms to adaptive response that drive the system towards an equilibrium without growth and change. This path dependent loop of interactions between the system properties and the individual actions of firms is central to this book. Paving the way to a new phase of evolutionary economics, the book's prime readership will be students and scholars who study and teach evolutionary economics, the economics of innovation and/or the economics of growth.

World Statistics on Mining and Utilities 2020 provides a unique biennial overview of the role of mining and utility activities in the world economy. This extensive resource from UNIDO provides detailed time series data on the level, structure and growth of international mining and utility activities by country and sector. Country level data is clearly presented on the number of establishments, employment and output of activities such as coal, iron ore and crude petroleum mining as well as the production and supply of electricity, natural gas and water.This unique and comprehensive source of information meets the growing demand of data users who require detailed and reliable statistical information on the primary industry and energy producing sectors. The publication provides internationally comparable data for economic researchers, development strategists and business communities who influence the policy of industrial development and its environmental sustainability.

This book suggests that the scope and breadth of regulatory reforms since the mid-1980s and particularly during the 1990s, are so striking that they necessitate a reappraisal of current approaches to the study of the politics of regulation. The authors call for the adoption of different and fresh perspectives to examine this area. The contributors to this volume analyse how regulatory regimes that were once peculiar to the US and a few industries have, in recent years, come to define the best practice of governance over the world capitalist economy and over numerous social and economic sectors. They go on to suggest various explanations for the expansion of regulatory institutions, addressing some of the most critical problems and offering new methodological techniques to enable further study. The contributions also provide distinct cross-national and cross-sectoral comparative approaches, and emphasise the changes in the economic and social context of regulation and the implications of these developments on the rise of the regulatory state. These changes, together with the general advance in the study of regulation, undoubtedly demand a re-evaluation of the theory of regulation, its methodologies and scope of application. This book is a perceptive investigation of recent evolutions in the manner and extent of governance through regulation. Scholars and students of comparative politics, public policy, regulation theory, institutional economics and political sociology will find it to be essential reading. It will also prove a valuable source of reference for those working or dealing with regulatory authorities and for business managers in private industries and services operating under a regulatory framework.

This book focuses on one of the most important features of the contemporary Japanese economy; cross shareholding - or mutual shareholding - between corporations. The book analyses recent trends and the reasons behind these, and discusses the implications for the entire Japanese economic system and highlights relevant public policy. Mitsuaki Okabe proposes that the dissolution of cross shareholdings has weakened the importance of long-term transactional relationships as seen in the Keiretsu (the 'main bank') practice and employment, and that as a result the character of the economy is now closer to that of the Anglo-American system. Cross Shareholdings in Japan is a timely book and will be of special interest to academics and researchers of economics, Asian studies and finance, as well as policymakers and those involved either directly or indirectly in the Japanese financial system.

The theme of this book is moral leadership in action as it manifests itself implicitly and explicitly in European business organizations. We understand leadership as interplay among people at all levels within organizations and also within the economic system by which people are bound together through particular forms of interaction. The contributions collected in this volume mirror the plurality of approaches we find in the theoretical writings of academics in different European countries. The additional business cases from six different nations show how leaders actually have adopted and integrated working with values in their own organizations, i.e. how they put moral leadership into action. While the selected papers are not meant to be representative of each country, particular economic and cultural traditions are apparent in both thinking and managing moral leadership. The contributors, by presenting this emerging multicultural pattern of Europe, contribute to a better and more knowledgeable understanding of how European business leaders pursue their goals. Managers, students and teachers in business, ethics and leadership studies will find this volume an indispensable guide to the unique contributions of European leadership scholars.

The Dynamics of Industrial Collaboration revisits and reformulates issues previously raised by inter-firm collaboration. The latest research in collaboration, processes and evaluation of cooperation, and industrial and research networks, is presented by way of both empirical and theoretical studies. The authors use several theoretical perspectives to explain inter-firm and inter-institutional collaboration: the theory of transaction costs and contracts, evolutionary theory, and the resource-based view. The book illustrates that none of these approaches are dominant. The issue of collaboration is raised in various contexts such as the new economics, biotechnology, and the motor industry. It will be of special interest to industrial economists and scholars of evolutionary economics.

The mainstream perception of Russian business today is framed by images of wild capitalism and a Dutch-diseased resource-dependent economy with poorly functioning rules and institutions. Despite the continued relevance of these issues in the current environment, readers of this book will discover that business in Russia has undergone a remarkable transformation. Important characteristics of the contemporary Russian business climate include the rise of a new generation of Russian business leaders and entrepreneurs, a variety of innovative and adaptive business strategies developed to respond to the increasingly VUCA world, a confident middle class with significant purchasing power, as well as a surprising level of integration in the world economy, including increasingly with China and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). These evolving developments have received little attention from researchers and practitioners. This book has been written by Russian experts and thought leaders to address this knowledge gap. The five sections provide a diverse but integrated set of opinion pieces, analyses and cases about Russian business covering markets and macro perspectives, strategy and governance, innovation and entrepreneurship, internationalization and leadership. The aim is to overcome preconceptions by illustrating the underreported and multifaceted nature of the life of Russian business and take the reader closer to what is really happening on the ground. The book contains more than 50 contributions from 54 authors representing opinion leaders in Russia and abroad including prominent academics and businessmen. The Life of Russian Business is aimed at practitioners, policy-makers and educators, as well as those generally interested in Russia. By disseminating state-of-the-art insights on Russian decision-makers and institutions, the book ultimately delivers a well informed and balanced guide for those wishing to participate in Russia's economy.

This book provides an overview of the historical financial reforms and regulatory changes in China, highlighting the background to and causes of changes in the income structure of China's banks. It also investigates ongoing concerns with regard to banking diversification in China, and its consequences, amid the global trend of banks' shift to non-traditional businesses. Focusing on three critical aspects of bank-income diversification, namely the effects on profitability, risk level, and efficiency, it employs the concept of systemically important banks, which describes the scale and degree of influence a bank has in global and domestic financial markets. More importantly, rather than replicating techniques employed in the research on developed markets, it applies several improved methodologies to address bank diversification in the specific context created by China's unique institutional background and data characteristics, such as GMM-type threshold models and stochastic frontier analysis with the within maximum likelihood estimation. Shedding new light on the current status of income diversification in the Chinese banking sector, this book is a valuable resource for readers in fields such as banking and financial stability. It will also help banking professionals and financial regulatory authorities to better understand the reform of China's financial industry and the future direction of banking.

The presence of transaction costs greatly modifies the traditional picture of the allocation of resources through the market. It gives rise to many phenomena inexplicable in the simple market view and to problems of government policy. Oliver Williamson has been a leading figure in this analysis. His interpretations of corporate governance and of the complementarity between internal controls and the market have been the most profound in the literature. It is good that his leading essays are now available in collected form.' - Kenneth J. Arrow, Stanford University, US'Oliver Williamson's contributions to economics are certainly among the most important of the past several decades, and their importance will be increasingly recognized as economists come to grips with all that he has accomplished. This collection provides an unparalleled view of those contributions, and it belongs on the bookshelf of everyone who wants to understand complex economic transactions.' - David Kreps, Stanford University, US 'This book provides a terrific opportunity to have a collection of Oliver Williamson's best papers on transaction cost economics all in one convenient volume.' - Paul L. Joskow, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and MIT 'Williamson's work on transaction cost economics has shaped the thinking of all social scientists about organizations and institutions. This volume reprints many of his seminal papers on the subject, and is valuable both as commemoration and for reference.' - Avinash Dixit, Princeton University, US Transaction cost economics has and continues to be a fruitful area of research. There is still much to be done in the field with past research being used in conjunction with the vast number of contractual phenomena that have yet to be investigated in transaction cost economics terms. New challenges are posed by the need to move beyond the design of new contractual instruments (such as financial derivatives) to include an examination of the lurking hazards that attend contract implementation. This important collection brings together Professor Williamson's key papers on transaction cost economics. It will be of benefit to academics, scholars and practitioners with an interest in this progressive subject.

This is the second book celebrating Brian Loasby's contribution to economics by an internationally renowned group of authors including Mark Casson, G.B. Richardson, Nicolai Foss, Keith Pavitt, Martin Fransman and Richard Day. It extends Brian Loasby's work in the area of the theory of the firm and related methodological issues. This book is mainly concerned with the theory of the firm, a subject central to much of Brian Loasby's work. The authors begin by considering the existence and nature of firms and their internal and external relations, paying special attention to the themes of coordination and communication costs in a world of surprise and change. The discussion then moves on to the way in which firms use and create knowledge and capabilities, referring to questions of organization, with some detailed empirical investigation of high technology industries. The final part focuses on methodological issues including rationality, knowledge, incommensurability and equilibrium, in the context of different traditions. This book will be welcomed by microeconomists especially those interested in the theory of the firm and methodology.

This book explains how the traditional paradigm of private and public organizations is changing as a result of the multiple factors that are affecting the way in which goods and services are produced, and for whom they are produced. In view of these disruptive trends, the theory of the firm needs to be updated and to some extent rethought. Moreover, diverse challenges and opportunities such as climate change, aging populations, and new public accountability requirements are necessitating novel frameworks to ensure the long-term survival of public and private organizations. Against this backdrop, the authors contribute to the debate over the firm's primary interest by proposing a new way of viewing the nature of the firm and its relationship with stakeholders. In addition, they carefully analyze the challenges and opportunities mentioned above, evaluating their significance for various important aspects of organizations through different lenses. Global in scope, the book also takes the United Nations Sustainability Development Goals into account. Accordingly, it will be of interest to all readers seeking a better understanding of the evolving nature of firms and organizations in our changing world.

This book investigates how paid care work and employment are being transformed by policies of social care individualisation in the context of new gig economies of care. Drawing on a case study of the creation of a new individualised care market under Australia's National Disability Insurance Scheme the book provides important insights into possible futures for social care employment where care is treated as an individual consumer service. Bringing together sociological, political science and socio-legal approaches the book demonstrates how, in individualised care markets and with ineffective labour laws, risks of business and employment are devolved to frontline care workers. The book argues for an urgent re-evaluation of current policy approaches to care and for new regulatory approaches to protect workers in diverse forms of employment.

By harnessing technological progress, good innovation policies can help enhance economic growth. New research offers additional insights into the design and application of such innovative policies.Industrial Dynamics, Innovation Policy, and Economic Growth through Technological Advancements examines the nature of the process of technological change in different sectors of an array of countries, analyzing the impact of innovation as well as research and development activities on different outcomes in different fields and assessing the design and impact of policies aimed at enhancing innovativeness of firms. The analyses and findings of the studies in this book contribute to the advancement of knowledge in the field of industrial dynamics, innovation policies, and economic growth.

Fostering inclusive green growth in Africa means addressing existing and emerging development challenges, while efficiently managing Africa's natural capital and building resilience to environmental, social and economic risks. Although this new paradigm for development has the potential to create tremendous business opportunities, there are also challenges. This book provides empirical evidence on the conditions for the emergence of green businesses in Africa. It includes 13 case studies, which identify the determinants of small and medium-size enterprises' engagement in inclusive and sustainable growth in rural Africa, and the factors that hinder eco-innovation in business and entrepreneurial activities. Furthermore it discusses appropriate regulations and policies to stimulate the development of green business in Africa. Offering insights into the relationship between eco-innovation, labor productivity and business competitiveness in rural Africa, this book appeals to scholars, policy makers and practitioners interested in a green economy for Africa.