LSE’s research highlights this month looks at LSE Cities’ European Metromonitor project, asking “Why have some European cities weathered the global financial crisis better than others?”
LSE Cities’ Dr Antoine Paccoud says analysis of the data shows manufacturing and construction both account for an important share of the variation.
“Cities which boosted their manufacturing output in the years preceding the crisis outperformed those in which the share of manufacturing decreased,” he says.
“What is also striking is that regardless of what happened to their manufacturing sector, cities which focused heavily on construction had, on average, lower annual growth rates for 2007-2013 than cities in which the share of the construction sector dropped.
“On average, the most resilient cities are those that developed their industrial sector from a low base while de-emphasising construction, while those that turned their back on their strong manufacturing base and focused on construction fared the worst.”