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The Italian Crisis within the European Crisis. The Relevance of the Technological Foreign Constraint

Author

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  • Stefano Lucarelli

    (Università degli Studi di Bergamo, Italy and CES, Université Paris 1, France)

  • Roberto Romano

    (IGCL (Italian General Confederation of Labour))

Abstract
The debate on the Italian economic crisis in the Euro zone should address a fundamental issue: what is the origin of the decline in productivity that affected the Italian economic system even before the European crisis begun in 2010? We argue that the effective demand can be revived only by governing the structural economic dynamics. Embracing a theoretical approach that may be called “structuralism” in line with the contributions by Leon (1965), Sylos Labini (1977) and Pasinetti (1993), we will propose to analyze the technological causes that may explain the balance-of-payment constraint affecting year by year the Italian growth. In this perspective we will introduce the notion of technological foreign constraint. We will argue that such a phenomenon, not the increasing public debt, constitutes the shock that deteriorated the Italian labour productivity in the last twenty five years. In the last part of the article we will also present an empirical proof of the previous thesis, by showing the technological dependence of the Italian economic system by the German economic system, through the estimation of the productivity gap equation. We propose this equation drawing inspiration from Paolo Sylos Labini (1984, 1993, 2004).

Suggested Citation

  • Stefano Lucarelli & Roberto Romano, 2016. "The Italian Crisis within the European Crisis. The Relevance of the Technological Foreign Constraint," World Economic Review, World Economics Association, vol. 2016(6), pages 1-12, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wea:worler:v:2016:y:2016:i:6:p:12
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Claudia Fontanari & Antonella Palumbo, 2023. "Permanent scars: The effects of wages on productivity," Metroeconomica, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(2), pages 351-389, May.
    3. Andrea Coveri & Mario Pianta, 2019. "The Structural Dynamics of Income Distribution:Technology, Wages and Profits," Working Papers 1901, University of Urbino Carlo Bo, Department of Economics, Society & Politics - Scientific Committee - L. Stefanini & G. Travaglini, revised 2019.
    4. Gaetano Perone, 2018. "Produttività del lavoro, dinamica salariale e squilibri commerciali nei Paesi dell'Eurozona: un'analisi empirica," Economia & lavoro, Carocci editore, issue 3, pages 61-98.
    5. Fontanari, Claudia, 2024. "The role of wages in triggering innovation and productivity: A dynamic exploration for European economies," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    6. Guglielmo Forges Davanzati & Rosario Patalano & Guido Traficante, 2019. "The Italian economic stagnation in a Kaldorian theoretical perspective," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 36(3), pages 841-861, October.

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