This book analyses growth at the total economy and industry level from an international perspective, providing unique cross-country comparisons. The authors focus on the EU-25 countries but also include the US, Japan and Korea. The chapters explore growth patterns from a long-run perspective, although greater attention is paid to the period of expansion from 19952007 and the post 2008 period of crisis. Each contribution builds on a common methodology based on a detailed database providing a high degree of disaggregation with respect to the industries and factors accounting for growth. The role played by ICT is expertly emphasized, in particular the different paths followed in the US and the EU. This topical book will prove to be an unrivalled source of comparative data for academics, practitioners and policymakers alike.

Res. en alemán.

A volume on labour productivity in Europe in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. It provides rationales for recent productivity trends in France, the UK, Germany, and Spain, and analyses policy responses to the crisis and how these have affected post-recession outcomes.

The present study aims to contribute to an understanding of European industrial policy by introducing an historical perspective. National policy continuities and the considerable time over which industrial performance responds to changed environments emerge with greater clarity in the long run. The chapters in this book take a broad view of industrial policy, including those policies that establish the framework', such as competition law, as well as sector for firm specific policies.

Industrial policy is a good example of the growing economic and political interdependency between Europe and the United States. The contributors to this volume, which compiles the proceedings of the seventh conference sponsored by the Institute for the Comparative Study of Public Policy, examine the ways in which national, and supranational in the case of the European Community, industrial policies are implemented. It is thought that diversity within the country is the primary reason why the United States does not have a comprehensive national policy. There is a consensus among the authors that the U.S. economy is less subject or amenable to central government planning than the economies of Europe. In Europe, there is more interest in coordinating industrial policy throughout the European Community, but here too the failure to adopt a comprehensive policy reveals the enormous diversity and parochialism that conflict with supranational goals. The contributors conclude that while a centrally planned and implemented industrial policy may be desirable, we do not have the means to achieve it. Acknowledging the major industrial and trade problems facing the United States and Western Europe, the authors feel that it is not clear whether these problems can be resolved by government intervention.