Perspectives on industrial policies in Italy and in Europe: a forum

A wide-ranging rethinking is now under way in Europe on the responsibilities of governments in economic affairs and, in particular, on the need for action in shaping new technologies and industrial structure. The 2008 crisis and the long stagnation that has followed have shown the inability of current policies to lead to a sustained recovery, the failure of private investment to identify growth opportunities even in a context of interest rates close to zero, and the deepening divide that is emerging between the strong German-centred industrial ‘core’ and the weakening ‘periphery’ of Southern and Eastern Europe.