Economics of Agglomeration

This book provides the first unifying treatment of the range of economic reasons for the clustering of firms and households. Its goal is to explain further the trade-off between various forms of increasing returns and different types of mobility costs. Although referring to agglomeration as a generic term is convenient, it should be noted that the concept of economic agglomeration refers to distinct real world situations. The main focus of the treatment is on cities, but it also explores the formation of agglomerations, such as commercial districts within cities, industrial clusters at the regional level, and the existence of imbalance between regions. The book is rooted within the realm of modern economics and borrows concepts from geography and regional science, which makes it accessible to a broad audience formed by economists, geographers, regional planners, and other scientists. It may be used in coursework for graduate students and upper-level undergraduates.

ISBN 0521805244   Pages 480 ISBN13 9780521805247 (What's this?)   Volumes 1 Publisher Cambridge University Press   Weight (grammes) 700 Imprint Cambridge University Press   Published in Cambridge Format Paperback   Height (mm) 228 Publication date 02 May 2002   Width (mm) 152 Library of Congress HT388 .F85 2001   Spine width (mm) 27 DEWEY 330   Academic level Professional / Scholarly, Tertiary education DEWEY edition DC21

		Acknowledgments
1		Agglomeration and Economic Theory		1
Pt. I		Fundamentals of Geographical Economics
2		The Breakdown of the Price Mechanism in a Spatial Economy		25
3		The Thunen Model and Land Rent Formation		62
4		Increasing Returns and Transport Costs: The Fundamental Trade-Off of a Spatial Economy		93
5		Cities and the Public Sector		133
Pt. II		The Structure of Metropolitan Areas
6		The Spatial Structure of Cities under Communications Externalities		169
7		The Formation of Urban Centers under Imperfect Competition		217
Pt. III		Factor Mobility and Industrial Location
8		Industrial Agglomeration under Marshallian Externalities		267
9		Industrial Agglomeration under Monopolistic Competition		303
Pt. IV		Urban Systems and Regional Growth
10		Back to Thunen: The Formation of Cities in a Spatial Economy		351
11		On the Relationship between Agglomeration and Growth		388
		References		433
		Name Index		453
		Subject Index		459

'This is a wonderfully informative book on spatial economics, by two of the best people in the field. I learned a lot that I didn't know, and so will you. Better than any book so far, this integrates concepts that range from 'edge cities' to global divergence into a single grand view.' Paul Krugman, Princeton University 'This new monograph by Masahisa Fujita and Jacques-Francois Thisse is a comprehensive survey of spatial economics, taking the reader all the way from von Thunen to the current research with clarity and rigor.' Robert Lucas, University of Chicago 'As I started reading this book, I asked myself whether it was going to be the key reference in spatial economics for many years to come. After completing my reading, I am confident the answer is a resounding yes. This is a book of enormous merits.' Giles Duranton, Urban Studies

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