Los Actores económicos y la dimensión regional : la Cambra de Comerç de Barcelona y Foment del Treball Nacional (1997-2007)

Esta investigación trata de esclarecer qué opinión merece y cómo repercute la existencia de gobiernos regionales en las organizaciones empresariales de ámbito regional. Ello lo observamos mediante el análisis de dos organizaciones empresariales catalanas: Foment del Treball Nacional y la Cambra de Comerç, Indústria i Navegació de Barcelona. Desafortunadamente, como sucede para el caso español, tras más de veinticinco años de experiencia regional existe un vacío en la literatura académica, tan sólo unos pocos estudios referenciados, tanto de organizaciones empresariales regionales como de su opinión sobre el Estado de las Autonomías y sus implicaciones para un determinado modelo económico y proyecto político.

Sobre la puesta en marcha del nuevo sistema de financiación regional: proyecciones para 2009 y algunas reflexiones

This paper presents an estimate of the financial results of the new Spanish system of regional financing in 2009. According to these estimates, some regions will experience sharp reductions in their adjusted financing per capita between 2007 and 2009 which may be very difficult to accept. This would mean that there will be strong pressures for the reform of the new system from the very beginning. To avoid, or at least mitigate, this problem it would be helpful to introduce some changes in the bill currently being discussed by the Parliament. The necessary changes would not alter the nucleus of the recent agreement.

El nuevo sistema de financiación regional: Un análisis crítico y proyecciones para 2009

The central and regional governments of Spain have recently reached an agreement to reform the regional financing system. This paper describes the structure of the new system and provides preliminary estimates of its initial financial results. It also identifies some shortcomings of the new model.

Una Nota sobre la dinámica de la financiación regional

En esta nota se analizan las propiedades dinámicas del actual sistema de financiación y se comparan con las de su antecesor, prestando especial atención a la sensibilidad de ambos al crecimiento de la renta y la población regional así como a la evolución de la estructura por edades de esta última

Party competition in regional elections: a framework for analysis

Whilst scholars have long recognised that processes of decentralisation create new regional arenas where distinct patterns of party competition are likely to emerge, there has been little systematic analysis of the dynamics of such competition. This working paper thus proposes a framework for analysing party competition between regional branches of state-wide parties, and autonomist parties, in regional arenas. Firstly, the different strategies political parties may adopt in response to their perceptions of voter preferences and to the strategies pursued by their competitors are identified. Secondly, different factors that impact on parties' strategic choices, and which may constrain a party's ability to select electorally optimal strategies in a given political context, are proposed.

Regional value added in Italy over the long run (1891-2001): linking indirect estimates with official figures, and implications

This paper presents value added estimates for the Italian regions, in benchmark years from 1891 until 1951, which are linked to those from official figures available from 1971 in order to offer a long-term picture. Sources and methodology are documented and discussed, whilst regional activity rates and productivity are also presented and compared. Thus some questions are briefly reconsidered: the origins and extent of the north-south divide, the role of migration and regional policy in shaping the pattern of regional inequality, the importance of social capital, and the positioning of Italy in the international debate on regional convergence, where it stands out for the long run persistence of its disparities.

Parents, television and cultural change

This paper develops a model of cultural transmission where television plays a central role for socialization. Parents split their free time between educating their children which is costly and watching TV which though entertaining might socialize the children to the wrong trait. The free to air television industry maximizes advertisement revenue. We show that TV watching is increasing in cultural coverage, cost of education, TV's entertainment value and decreasing in the perceived cultural distance between the two traits. A monopolistic television industry captures all TV watching by both groups if the perceived cultural distance between groups is small relative to the TV's entertainment value. Otherwise, more coverage will be given to the most profitable group where profitability increases in group size, advertisement sensitivity and perceived cultural distance. This leads to two possible steady states where one group is larger but both groups survive in the long run. Competition in the media industry might lead to cultural extinction but only if one group is very insensitive to advertisement and not radical enough not to watch TV. We briefly discuss the existing evidence for the empirical predictions of the model.

Indicadores de desempeño educativo regional: metodología y resultados para los cursos 2005-06 a 2007-08

En esta nota se recopilan y/o construyen algunos indicadores de desempeño para los sistemas educativos de las regiones españolas durante los cursos 2005-06 a 2007-08 a partir de la información suministrada por diversas publicaciones del Ministerio de Educación. Aunque el trabajo se concentra en los niveles educativos no universitarios, se ofrecen también algunos resultados preliminares a nivel universitario.

Simulating the Impact of Sectorial Productivity Gains on Two Regional Economies: Key Sectors from a Supply Side Perspective

In this paper we simulate and analyse the economic impact that sectorial productivity gains have on two regional Spanish economies (Catalonia and Extremadura). In particular we study the quantitative effect that each sector’s productivity gain has on household welfare (real disposable income and equivalent variation), on the consumption price indices and factor relative prices, on real production (GDP) and on the government’s net income (net taxation revenues of social transfers to households). The analytical approach consists of a computable general equilibrium model, in which we assume perfect competition and cleared markets, including factor markets. All the parameters and exogenous variables of the model are calibrated by means of two social accounting matrices, one for each region under study. The results allow us to identify those sectors with the greatest impact on consumer welfare as the key sectors in the regional economies. Keywords: Productivity gains, key sectors, computable general equilibrium

Resultados de la cirugía de rescate tras el fracaso loco-regional en pacientes con carcinoma de cabeza y cuello tratados con quimioterapia

Amb l'augment de l’ús de la quimioradioteràpia concomitant (CCRT) al tractament del carcinoma avançat de cap i coll, la cirurgia ha perdut terreny com a primer tractament i s’ha reservat pel tractament de rescat en cas de recidiva loco-regional. L’objectiu de l’estudi es revisar la nostra experiència en pacients amb recidiva local o regional després del tractament amb CCRT i als que se’ls hi va realitzar cirurgia de rescat. El 83% del pacients amb cirurgia de rescat en el lloc del tumor primari van requerir algun tipus de reconstrucció amb penjalls regionals o lliures microanastomosats.

Parámetros predictivos de dificultad en la práctica de la anestesia regional neuroaxial

Objectiu: avaluar quines característiques del pacient i de la tècnica influeixen en la predicció de dificultat en la realització d’un bloqueig neuroaxial. Material i mètodes: estudi observacional prospectiu de 539 pacients sotmesos a un bloqueig regional neuroaxial. Registrem dades demogràfiques, anatòmiques, relacionades amb la tècnica (palpació d’estructures de referència, grau de flexió, morfologia de la curvatura lumbar), experiència anestesiòleg i número d’intents amb/sense redirigir l’agulla. Variable resposta: punció fàcil/difícil. Resultats i conclusions: variables predictives independents de dificultat: flexió dolenta/regular, palpació dolenta/regular d’estructures anatòmiques de referència i curvatura lumbar no convexa. Anatomia, edat i IMC van quedar excloses.

Air services on thin routes: Regional versus low-cost airlines

An examination of the impact in the US and EU markets of two major innovations in the provision of air services on thin routes - regional jet technology and the low-cost business model - reveals significant differences. In the US, regional airlines monopolize a high proportion of thin routes, whereas low-cost carriers are dominant on these routes in Europe. Our results have different implications for business and leisure travelers, given that regional services provide a higher frequency of flights (at the expense of higher fares), while low-cost services offer lower fares (at the expense of lower flight frequencies). Keywords: air transportation; regional jet technology; low-cost business model; thin markets. JEL Classification Numbers: L13; L2; L93.

Flexible employment and cross- regional adjustment

Employment flexibility is commonly associated to greater labour mobility and thus faster cross-regional adjustments. The literature however offers very little hard evidence on this and quite limited theoretical guidance. This paper examines empirically the relationship between employment flexibility and cross-regional adjustment (migration) at the regional and local levels in the UK. Employment flexibility is associated to higher labour mobility (but only at a rather localised scale) and at the same time seems to reduce the responsiveness of migration to unemployment. This suggest that rising flexibility may be linked to higher persistence in spatial disparities, as intra-regional adjustments are strengthened while extraregional adjustments weakened. Keywords: Employment flexibility, regional migration, labour market adjustment JEL Codes: R11, R23, J08, J61