The development of Italian economy has been primary based on manufacturing. The change in the competition environment is pushing toward a transition of the supply base toward new sectors and activities within the value chain, especially for firms pertaining to industrial districts. In particular, the process of international opening of the supply chain is requiring an active role of innovation- and internationalization-related services. A deep insight into the change of productive organization of district-base areas show how these effects are in fact taking place. The transition of Italian districts is analyzed from the analytical perspective of global value chain and some qualitative considerations about the nature and dimension of service are presented. In such a perspective the availability of a modern service economy is a pre-requisite of an effective upgrading process and an opportunity of further development. Service sectors themselves are subjects of an internationalization process and this could interact with the local demand of services related to manufacturing. The quantitative effects of manufacturing internationalization on domestic supply of service are hard to be estimated, but some preliminary empirical studies seem to confirm its elevance.

Mario Volpe, in "ARGOMENTI" 16/2006, pp. , DOI: