State subsidies and the sources of company finance in Italian industrial districts, 1951-1991

Industrial districts (hereinafter IDs) in Western Europe, Japan, the United States, and more recently, in emerging economies have been the subject of a major and interdisciplinary debate, with the focus ranging from their production system and strategy (the flexible specialization approach) to their economic and sociopolitical characteristics. One of the reasons for this interest is the striking contrast between the decline of manufacturing in the United States and the United Kingdom in the 1970s and 1980s and the sucess of manufacturing in such countries as West Germany, Italy, and Japan. This contrast has focused international attention on the economic performance of such regions as Emilia Romagna in Italy, Baden-Württemberg in Germany, West Jutland in Denmark, and the agglomeration of Ohta Ward in Japan, all characterized by the presence of IDs.