Italian competitiveness in high technology industries

A sectoral analysis of 1978-1991 trends in the invention, manufacturing and marketing, in Italy, of high technology goods suggests the need for greater R ampersand D investment by government and private industry and a broadening of the number and type of industries now contributing to the strengthening of this nation's overall high technology industrial base. This is especially the case with regard to the electronics sector in view of the strategic importance of this vital industry and the strong competition being given by the newly industrialized countries located on the Pacific Rim. With reference to the European Communities common market strategies, intended as a buffer against future unified efforts by North American and Pacific Rim countries to consolidate global market share in high technology goods, recent investment trends reveal that Italy's response thus far has been slow and asymmetric