This paper examines the implications for strategic trade policy of different assumptions about precommitment. In a dynamic oligopoly game with learning by doing, the optimal first-period subsidy is lower if firms cannot precommit to future output than if they can; and is lower still if the...

This paper documents the dynamics of growth and convergence across regions in the Cohesion countries, comparing them to patterns across countries in the world, regions in Europe and more broadly, and regions in non-Cohesion EU member states. Among the Cohesion economies, Spain and Portugal have,...

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it reviews the model of search and matching equilibrium and derives the properties of employment and unemployment equilibrium. Second, it applies the model to the study of employment fluctuations and to the explanation of differences in unemployment...

If the presence of a union in a workplace or firm raises the pay level, unless productivity rises correspondingly, financial performance is likely to be worse. If the product market is uncompetitive this might imply a simple transfer from capital to labour with no efficiency effects, but is...

This paper surveys the empirical literature on the economic geography of trade flows, factor prices, and the location of production. The discussion is structured around the empirical predictions of a canonical theoretical model. We review empirical evidence on the determinants of trade costs and...

This paper reports an investigation into the importance of basic skills in literacy and numeracy in the promotion of success on intermediate vocational courses at age 16+. Two measures of attainment in literacy and numeracy are examined; GCSE passes in English and Mathematics analysed by grade...

The literature on the dynamics of industry structure has generated very few robust empirical predictions. The paper shows that if one particular assumption is made about the pay off structure of an investment project, three well known games, a modified 'Grab the Dollar' game, an auction and a...

We examine gender concentration and segregation between and within establishments in the British economy, using the 1990 Workplace Industrial Relations Survey. Higher levels of gender concentration are found than are predicted by a gender-neutral random hiring model. There are striking effects...

Differences in preferences for unions between youths and adults in Canada are analysed based on a survey of approximately 1500 persons. The results indicate that the preferences of youth for unionisation are strongly influenced by social factors such as familial union status and the attitudes of...