R15 - General Regional Economics: Econometric and Input-Output Models; Other ModelsReturn

The convergence of economic level across regions is nowadays discussed especially in association with the efficiency of the EU Cohesion policy. This is the reason why many researchers investigate economic convergence only in a short term, during the last few decades. It is also caused by the lack of historical statistical data for regional levels. We solved this problem atypically by using reconstructed historical regional data that allow us to investigate the convergence in a long term. In this paper, we focus on Beta-convergence of Italian regions using real per capita GDP. The time series consists of reconstructed historical regional data for the period 1891–2009 and regional data from ISTAT for the period 1995–2016. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the process of Beta-convergence across Italian regions in the period 1891–2016 through spatial econometric analysis considering different political background. We used cross-sectional analysis which was extended by the spatial lag model through spatial weights matrix. The whole period was divided into shorter time spans according to the important milestones in the Italian history. We found out that there were times of regional convergence, divergence and stagnation. There are two most remarkable periods: the divergence era which started at the beginning of WWI and continued through interwar period until the end of WWII and the convergence era during miracolo economico italiano in the 1950s and 1960s.

The paper explains the relationship between the unemployment and structure of supply of the real estate market during the 20's and 30 's of 20th century in Czechoslovakia. There are four segments of the real estate market investigated, such as rental, home ownership, farmhouse and residential buildings. Correlations between the unemployment and rental sector and the farmhouse sector were found out. A certain correlation was discovered even between the farmhouse sector and the residential building sector. In the paper, the reasons of this relationship in conditions of the Czechoslovak real estate market are presented.

This article follows closely one of the principal challenges of the European Union - global, economic and environmentally sustainable development. This development is currently endangered by climate change which is being caused by increasing concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. At this moment, market instruments (emissions allowances trading, carbon taxation, etc.) represent such a green house gases reduction policy, attributed with the lowest cost level and high transparency. First attempt on coordinated international effort within this domain was the Kyoto protocol valid until 2012 - currently there are intensive negotiations being hold at different levels about its successor. The European Union has projected its vision on post-Kyoto functioning into so called climate and energy package, adopted by the European Council in December 2008. Main part is being represented by revised EU ETS system, playing the role of the main instrument of greenhouse gases mitigation. Writers of this article aim to interpret this engagement and its impacts on energy prices in Czech Republic, respectively estimate expertly costs of that instrument and describe crucial economic consequences.

The paper examines and analyzes the process of real convergence in the Visegrad countries at regional level NUTS 2. Theoretical background of the paper defines the methodological concept and definition of convergence, focusing on the concept of beta convergence, which is the case of unconditional (absolute) convergence. This approach is based on the neoclassical growth model. The empirical part of the article focuses on the analysis of beta convergence in NUTS 2 regions of the Visegrad Four countries in the reference period 1995 - 2006. Beta convergence is analyzed by nonlinear regression econometric model, which is formulated in two variations based on the mathematical concept of deterministic convergence. To estimate both models, indicator of gross domestic product per capita in constant prices was used.