Industry characteristics,spatial competition and industrial concentration – evidence from China

We study the determinants of a geographic concentration of manufacturing industries in a spatial competition framework. Based on a panel data set of China during 1995–2003, we have the following findings. First, some traditional comparative advantages in production factors such as labor endowment are becoming the major factors that prevent the industrial concentration. Second, the major factors that promote geographic manufacturing concentration are technology spillover and industry linkage. Third, the effect of economy of scale on manufacturing concentration is significant, but the direction depends on how the concentration is measured.