Search

This paper empirically examines the key factors driving UK direct investment in the Spanish regions over the period 2000–2016 and, consequently, tries to unveil its main motivation. Applying a spatial Durbin panel model to capture spatial linkages, the results point to the existence of complementarity between the FDI received by a region and that of the remaining ones. This outcome, along with a positive and statistically significant spillover effect of market potential, reveals that complex‐vertical FDI motivation with agglomeration economies prevails among UK MNEs investing in Spain. Additionally, our findings unveil the role played by some other FDI drivers, such as wages and infrastructure. Furthermore, the paper is unique in decomposing the average direct and spillover effects by region and pairs of regions, so that remarkable differences can be identified. This breakdown has strong significance from a policy perspective since it can guide regional policy makers. In short, our findings point out to the fact that FDI policy should be jointly designed by those regions presenting strong bilateral spillover effects. Thus, greater cooperation among policy makers would be welcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In this paper, Ciccone's ( ) approach is applied to the Spanish case in 2011 but by estimating it using local labor markets (LLMs) instead of NUTS‐2 or NUTS‐3 regions. It is especially relevant in the case of Spain because the NUTS‐3 (provinces) are large regions in comparison with other cases in Europe. From a sample of income taxpayers published by the Spanish Fiscal Studies Institute, we derive figures on average wages by worker on the scale of LLMs. We argue that working at this level of spatial disaggregation is more in line with the idea of externalities from agglomerations, which are generated on a local scale. We can also observe intra‐regional heterogeneity and how the urban wage premium changes along the entire distribution of cities, including small‐medium size urban areas or rural areas. The empirical analysis is based on several estimation strategies, namely, ordinary least squares, two‐stages least squares, quantile regressions (QR), and instrumental variable quantile regressions (IVQR) estimators; they all find a significantly positive effect of agglomeration in the conditional mean of wages. This result can be estimated along the conditional distribution of wages. According to the QR and IVQR estimates, important variations are found along the distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks at the divergent economic trajectories of Barcelona and Madrid since Spain's transition to democracy. It highlights how Barcelona, the city that was better positioned four decades ago to emerge as the main Spanish economic hub, has lost out to Madrid. We argue that the contrasting trajectories of the two cities have less to do with the pull of Madrid as the capital of Spain, with the development of new infrastructure in the country, or with agglomeration economies, and more with institutional factors. A growing societal divide in Barcelona along economic, social, and identity lines has led to a greater breakdown of trust and to the development of strong groups with limited capacity to bridge with one another than in Madrid. This has entailed the emergence of negative externalities that have limited the economic potential for growth in Barcelona and facilitated the rise of Madrid as the main economic hub within Spain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Spanish bank sector has restructured extensively since the crisis erupted in 2008 in an attempt to correct the imbalances accumulated during the preceding boom years. Thanks to this restructuring effort, Spain's branch network has been pared back by 32 percent, prompting questions about potential ramifications for the population's access to financial services. Against this backdrop, this paper quantifies, at the municipal level, the segment of the population without access to a bank branch in their home town between 2008 and 2015, paving the way for analysis of the impact of the restructuring effort. It also analyses the role played by the three kinds of deposit institutions in Spain in providing access to financial services via their branch networks. The results show that although the percentage of the Spanish population without access to a branch in their home town has risen, the increase has been small, albeit marked by significant differences from one province to the next. The savings banks (including the former cajas that have converted to banks) are still the most important financial institutions in terms of facilitating branch access to financial services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using the Social Capital theoretical framework, territorial agglomerations of firms, such as in the industrial district, can be identified as dense strong-tie networks and are thus suitable for exploiting activities. This paper addresses the possible exploring limitations of these clustered firms. Following alternative explanations, such as the structural holes and weak tie approaches, it is proposed that local institutions may play a role as intermediary agents between external disperse networks and internal dense networks, therefore enabling these firms to deal with the requirements of an ever-changing environment. The paper also develops an empirical section where the Spanish ceramic tile industrial district is described in order to illustrate theoretical arguments. Findings suggested a number of ways in which local institutions may facilitate the creation of value for firms. Particularly, local institutions interact with many external firms and institutions and undertake research projects with local firms. In addition, some quantification of the participation of firms in the activities carried out by institutions is offered, suggesting explanations for the barriers that prevent firms from gaining direct access to external networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to enrich the analysis on the significance of the individual firm resources in a cluster and the effects of diverse cluster relationships, including local and non-local ones, on firms' innovation capacity. On questioning the commonly accepted direct and positive impact, we explore the joint and non-linear effects of internal resources and inter-organisational relationships on innovation. Data from 251 footwear manufacturers located in the Spanish Vinalopó cluster were used to explore the proposed causal relationships. According to findings, the impact of each factor on product innovation is not homogeneous. Internal innovation efforts and cooperation with local suppliers positively affect the creation of new products, while collaboration with local customers and extra-cluster linkages presents an inverted U-shaped relationship with product innovation. Finally, a number of implications may be drawn for policy makers, practitioners, and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to evaluate the role that agglomeration may have on vertical boundaries in exchanges associated with high transaction costs. Transaction cost economics identifies the presence of specific assets in stages of the value chain as the main driver of vertical integration. However, under the trustworthy and shared social milieu that agglomerated spaces may confer, neighboring firms can enjoy lower opportunism risk and communication costs. Therefore, we assume that even in the presence of specific assets, physically proximate firms are more likely to remain specialized and establish market exchanges. Empirical evidence in 10,186 establishments from the Spanish meat industry confirms these hypotheses, although it is found that the moderating role of agglomeration in the relationship between asset specificity and vertical integration has a limited geographical reach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The probability of being employed varies depending on several factors. Many of these are related to personal characteristics such as educational level, age, gender, or number and age of children. Nevertheless, other factors may be relevant, in particular the geographical environment. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relevance of urban size and the position of each territory (in terms of its distance from large metropolises) for the probability of being employed in the Spanish economy. Following the set of economic regions suggested by ), we try to explain the spatial patterns of employment distribution. Our results show some relevant differences between these alternative economic areas. We find that municipalities with similar sizes and located at a similar distance from a metropolis but belonging to different Autonomous Communities or provinces share similar employability patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the role played by the cognitive dimension of social capital on knowledge acquisition in clustered firms. We have applied a structural model to an empirical survey of the Spanish footwear industry. Findings detect a significant indirect effect of the district membership on knowledge acquisition through cognitive social capital development. In contrast with the assumption of direct and free access to common knowledge in territorial agglomerations, findings suggested that knowledge access depends on the capacity of the firms to share visions, goals, values, and culture with other actors in the local neighborhood. The social capital perspective provides a solid base to explain heterogeneity among firm members in the industrial district in order to access common knowledge and capacities. Findings suggested that institutions involved in a district must favour efforts to boost the collective representation as well as common goals and vision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the effects of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) on corporate research and development (R&D) strategies using firm-level data on the Spanish manufacturing sector. The focus of the study is to determine whether M&A affects R&D portfolios by increasing or decreasing innovation input, such as in-house R&D, external R&D or both. The results show that M&A has a negative and significant impact on R&D intensity, decreasing in-house R&D and external technological sourcing. M&A enables the rationalization of R&D capacity, implying a decrease in R&D efforts. M&A negatively affects both types of R&D, but, on average, the effect is more negative on external R&D. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last 20 years, the Spanish banking industry has undergone a profound reshaping in several respects. One of the factors that has allowed this has been the geographic expansion of most savings banks into other regions outside their regions of origin that has been taking place at a significant pace since 1989. Almost simultaneously, the Spanish economy has grown at remarkable annual rates, a growth pattern that came to an abrupt halt in 2008. Under these circumstances, this paper analyzes the geographic expansion patterns of Spanish financial institutions during the postderegulation period. This goal extends previous analyses in two main ways: by considering a broader set of variables affecting bank branch location and by using a quantile regression in order to obtain results that go beyond conditional mean models. Results indicate that 1) location and geographic diversification patterns vary mostly across firms and by type of firm; 2) the evaluation of growth and financial development at municipal level indicates that some communities have experienced financial exclusion; and 3) it is difficult to establish a linear relationship to explain bank branch geographic diversification strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper proposes a model for calculating a composite index to evaluate the internal territorial cohesion or articulation of rural areas, specifically rural Spanish comarcas (groups of municipalities with common geographic and historical characteristics). Evaluation is based on the optimum spatial distributions of their urban nuclei and access to roads by their inhabitants. First, we built the index for spatial distributions of urban nuclei in each comarca. Next, we constructed road accessibility indexes for all urban nuclei to each other and to the main urban nucleus (defined by the largest concentration of services). Based on these indexes, we developed an Internal Territorial Articulation Index (ITAI) that reflects the spatial distribution of the territory's urban nuclei in terms of their aggregation, internal accessibility within the comarca, and relationship with the main urban nucleus. The ITAI was applied to four Spanish comarcas in the province of Almería: Almería Alpujarra, Almanzora, Los Vélez, and Almería Poniente. The results are highly varied and allow areas with low degrees of territorial articulation or coherence to be identified either by the distribution of their urban nuclei or by their poor accessibility to roads. Results were unfavourable in mountainous regions with steep slopes and in areas furthest from the province's large urban nuclei. The conclusions may help develop settlement and road transport infrastructure strategies in these rural comarcas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using panel data methods, for all the Spanish Autonomous Communities and for the period 1999-2009, the present study estimates the revenue of the casinos in each Autonomous Community on the basis of four variables of interest related to the taxation of gambling in each Community, the taxation in the neighboring Autonomous Communities and the expansion of online gambling, and certain economic and sociodemographic control variables. The estimation performed permits the verification of the hypotheses that the taxation of gaming in a region and the expansion of online gambling negatively affect the revenue accrued by the casinos located in that region, but does not offer evidence that the effect produced by the differences in taxation among neighboring regions is significant. The results obtained also confirm the expected impact on the casinos' revenue of the existence of 'type' gamblers (young males, and tourists) and of the economic situation (income and unemployment). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT A series of works have analysed differential behaviour in terms of productive efficiency between companies inside a hypothetical industrial district and those outside the district. This objective has been addressed using measures of technical efficiency. The results obtained provide valuable information for quantifying the district effect at a given moment in time. However, constant changes in the market and business behaviour mean that it is worthwhile studying the business district effect from a dynamic point of view. In this study, we provide this new vision through the use of Malmquist productivity indices. This methodology enables us to analyse possible differential evolutions by comparing the productive efficiency of companies inside and outside a district over a period of time. An empirical application has been made on a set of small and medium-sized Spanish ceramic producers during the period of economic expansion between 1996 and 2007. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the determinants of firm entry in Spanish municipalities. The authors consider that size is an important determinant of a city's capacity to attract new manufacturing firms. Panel data were used to estimate the determinants of entry according to urban size in Spain (from 1994 to 1702). This article contributes to the literature on market entry because most previous contributions have focused on regional factors rather than urban ones. The results show that local characteristics affect the formation of new firms. However, more local data are needed to obtain more specific results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]