European Competitiveness

Analyses the key factors determining European competitiveness.

Kirsty S. Hughes (Edited by)

9780521064330, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 5 June 2008

308 pages, 24 b/w illus. 65 tables
22.8 x 15.2 x 1.7 cm, 0.458 kg

This book analyses the key factors determining European competitiveness. It focuses in particular on the issues of internationalization of firms and markets, the role of technology and innovation, and of continuing European integration, and deals with these issues on the level of firms, industries and countries. The competitiveness of the EC as a whole, relative to the USA and Japan, is also examined. Part I deals with internationalization, the organization of firms, and the activities of multinationals in Europe. Part II focuses on trends in technological competitiveness, and its importance in growth and trade performance. Part III is concerned with structural change, the integration of the European market, competition and mergers, the role of the public sector, and the role of cultural differences. The book ends by addressing the role of industrial policy in the future of the Eastern European economies.

1. Introduction: internationalisation, integration and European competitiveness Kirsty Hughes
Part I. Internationalisation and Corporate Control: 2. Location decisions of Japanese multinational firms in European manufacturing industries Hideki Yamawaki
3. New forms of international involvement, competition, and competitiveness: the case of Italy Gianluigi Alzona, Laura Rondi and Giampaolo Vitali
4. Strategic technology partnering and international corporate strategies John Hagedoorn and Jos Schakenraad
5. Corporate control and competitiveness: the French case Danielle Galliano and Alain Alcouffe
Part II. Technological Specialisation and International Trade: 6. Patterns of technological specialisation and growth of innovative activities in advanced countries Daniele Archibugi and Mario Pianta
7. The role of technology, competition and skill in European competitiveness Kirsty Hughes
Part III. European Integration and Structural Change: 8. Mergers, acquisitions and the completion of the internal market Neil Kay
9. Growth, structural change and real convergence in the EC Christine Oughton
10. Public services and competitiveness Hugh Mosley and Gunther Schmid
11. Culture and competitiveness Shaun Hargreaves-Heap
12. Industrial policy and international competitiveness: the case of Eastern Europe David Audretsch.

Subject Areas: Economics [KC]