Should the invisible hand of free markets stay as invisible as possible? For the last 30 years, in Western countries and very especially in the US and the UK, under the auspices of the World Bank and the IMF, a form of capitalism consisting on shifting away from manufacturing towards services and minimizing the role of the state, has led to the diminishing of industry and serious disparities among regions.
In contrast to this context of withdrawal of government intervention and delocalisation followed by most of the big manufacturing multinationals, we analyze the so-called Marshallian Industrial District model. Our concern will be focused on the present situation of some Italian, Spanish and British regions, where industrial districts comprising mainly small and medium-sized firms compete successfully against these trends.
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