industrialisation

Equal land distribution in pre-industrial East Asia paradoxically drove poverty by enabling higher fertility among landowning households, creating population pressure that depressed wages. This dynamic explains why East Asia diverged from Western Eur...

China’s rise was powered by an export-led growth model reinforced by trade liberalisation, place-based and industrial policies, massive infrastructure investment, and a governance system that strongly incentivised local growth.

South Korea’s industrial transformation was driven by the mutually reinforcing promotion of technology adoption and exports – most notably through the Heavy and Chemical Industry Drive – which generated lasting gains in manufacturing and exports but ...

Industrial clusters can fuel economic booms today, but can also trap cities into tomorrow's decline. Evidence from two centuries of British cities reveals the lasting costs of specialisation.

Industrial policy prioritises growth in specific sectors. Yet there is little agreement about how to target sectors in practice, especially in developing countries, and many argue that governments cannot pick winners. So, how have governments’ export...

How can policymakers adapt to a changing world of development and an uncertain future?

South Korea’s industrial policy in the late 1970s played a critical role in forging its modern economy. Are there lessons for the developing world?

Resource-exporting countries urbanise without acquiring the industrial sectors typically associated with development