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Clusters are considered sources of competitive advantage. A cluster is understood as a set of resources; however, it is noted that these resources vary according to their trajectory. Thus, this paper seeks to analyze the relationship between shared resources in the life cycle of the cluster. We conducted a cross-country study with two clusters in the footwear industry: Brazil and Italy. We present two main contributions. First, the competitiveness of clusters is sustained by their ability to renew and change their dependent trajectory. Second, we propose five elements that positively influence cluster competitiveness. These elements also help us understand the trajectory of clusters.

The Temporary Solidarity Tax on Great Fortunes came into force in Spain at the end of 2022. This tax managed at state level and complementary to the Wealth Tax, will seek to harmonise the taxation of wealth in all the autonomous communities under the common regime. In this paper the taxation of wealth in Spain is analysed, as well as the reform proposals put forward to date. The new state tax is estimated using microsimulation techniques for the year 2022, with the aim of obtaining the main revenue effects that its implementation will have. Its impact will be unequal between autonomous communities due to the existing differences in the regional regulations of the Wealth Tax.

This paper assesses whether European Cohesion Policy funds from the 2007-2013 programming period
affected business dynamics in European regions. Using a regression discontinuity approach, the analysis
shows that regions receiving more funds experienced higher firm births, without statistically significant
firm deaths, resulting in positive net firm creation and growing firm-related employment. In addition, this
study confirms previous findings in the literature according to which regions receiving more funds show
higher increases in gross value added per worker. Finally, funds have a significantly higher effect on net
business employment creation in regions with lower levels of perceived corruption, although this is not
necessarily conductive to higher levels of labour productivity in those regions.

This article examines the role of support organizations (SOs) in promoting innovation and competitiveness
in Paraguayan companies. Six important clusters in the country are analyzed: meat and derivatives, dairy,
ceramics and construction, textiles, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals. Collaboration networks are
reconstructed using data from interviews with companies and SOs. Network analysis, econometric
regressions, and qualitative analysis of the interviews are employed. The results reveal how companies access
external resources to enhance their competitiveness and foster innovation through cluster SOs. In the
context of a developing country, cooperation between these organizations in cross-sector and crossterritory
networks is crucial.

We use Spanish firm-level data over the period 1998-2018 to examine the importance of the top exporter
in each province (NUTS-III) exports. We find that: (1) the top exporter in each province represents about
one fifth of total exports per year; (2) it contributes significantly to province´s export growth whilst on its
way towards the top position; and (3) shocks to the top exporter of a province explain the fluctuations in
aggregate exports growth.

According to recent studies, the growing economic integration between Mexico and the United States,
that resulted from the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), heterogeneously transformed the
economic structure of Mexico’s states. is study provides evidence that this, in turn, altered the degree
and nature of economic synchronization among them. Furthermore, it shows evidence of an increasingly
significant positive relationship from 1994 on between economic synchronization and the level of
sophistication of states’ economic structures [measured by the Economic Complexity Index (ECI)]. As
economic integration increases, it becomes easier for shocks to be transmitted between state economies
with similar economic structures, either because their characteristics make them more sensitive to the same
kinds of shocks or simply because they are so closely linked. Our results help provide a greater
understanding of the states’ economic evolution during the period analyzed.

The seasonality and volatility of the primary sector mean that many regions have seen tourism as a key
activity for developing these areas, mainly in inland Andalusia. In this sense, protected designations of
origin offer a more excellent perception of safety and quality for tourists visiting a site for gastronomic
reasons. Thus, through a Latent Class Model with covariates, this work aims to understand the behavior
of international tourists to help establish a stable tourism offer in these areas that complements their
income by identifying different segments that may be attractive to them. Based on the four segments found
(lonely youngsters, traditional elders, cultural elders and young gourmets) that differ in expenditure and
stay length, a series of recommendations are made based on these identified groups.

The latest research and development (R&D) framework programmes of the European Union (EU), “Horizon 2020” and “Horizon Europe”, have significantly increased the resources available to promote science and innovation in Europe. However, the strong competitiveness of the research teams and their search for excellence may cause inequality in the spatial distribution of investment effort in R&D. The aim of this paper is to analyse the geographic distribution of R&D spending in the EU. A greater concentration of funds is observed in the most advanced and dynamic economies, capable of promoting more competitive research teams and projects. Through an empirical analysis, estimated by a spatial convergence model, it is found that EU R&D funds are preventing cross-regional convergence in Europe by driving growth mainly in wealthier regions. Based on these results, it seems relevant to consider spatial correction mechanisms for the distribution of R&D resources so that they achieve greater territorial cohesion in Europe.

Regional studies on religiosity are non-existent in Spain and infrequent or non-existent in the Europe regional sphere, but not between countries. This article shows the regional variability in Spain of people who identify themselves as believers. It is argued that religious identification (believers) in Spain is regionally heterogeneous and that the regional effects associated with religiosity are altered by other ascriptive variables, gender, age, and educational attainment. 124 barometers have been merged, files from the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) of Spain from January 2013 to May 2022, monthly, except Augusts, obtaining a sample size of 402,868 interviewees (394,906 identify themselves as religious or non-religious).