1,721,119 research outputs found
LIBRO: Mercado y empresas em Europa: la empresa González de la Sierra en el comercio gaditano entre los siglos XVIII y XIX
No full textEconomic theory often referred, also in the not-so-recent past, to the concepts of trends, cycles and fluctuations and studied the origins and features of the economy's undulating movements. However, during the first part of the XXth centuty, this theme benefited from a significant development of analysis by means of several fruitful studies. As clarified more than half a century ago: «Of such works some are historical or descriptive in character, others are analytical with a deductive base, others are analytical as well, but based on induction, having the aim to gather and elaborate a problem’s main data; other still are summaries with the purpose of constructing the fluctuation theory, both by induction and deduction». These words by Marco Fanno came back to the Author’s memory when he had to tackle the research on a Cadiz-based commercial enterprise in a long timeframe, between the first half of the XVIIIth and the second half of the XIXth century. The duties undertaken, once the archive in Cadiz was found and examined, had no intention to be limited to the reconstruction of one specific endeavor, however rich and complex that might be; on the contrary, it pursued the goal to integrate the evolution of the entrepreneurial deeds in the Cadiz – and Spanish – background of the time. Therefore, choosing an inductive method had not the purpose of restricting the perspective of the study to entrepreneurial microhistory; on the contrary, it became the cornerstone of something much more complex and meaningful: starting from a single case, featuring an uniquely consistent archive source and value to lend (or subtract) credibility to the analysis carried out on trade in Cadiz up to that point, hopefully giving some new tools to interested scholars and readers. Such a setup has been confirmed also by Robert H. Parker’s classification of accounting sources within historical research. In such a context, the importance of those resources came into the limelight not only on behalf of the observation of entrepreneurial performance, of the evolution of accounting methods or of the information on extra-economic methods, but also concerning a reconnaissance of those “economically relevant events, on the macro rather than the micro side”, as told by PierAngelo Toninelli. The primary source of the research, i.e. the archive of the “González de la Sierra” firm gave the main tools to carry out this survey, allowing the Author to rely on such quantitative and qualitative methods as to succeed in focusing the complex endeavor of a commercial enterprise during well more than a century and to compare and adapt it to the flow of Cadiz economy during the same timeframe. It is indeed true that, according to Witold Kula, «when good documents are available, some significant indexes may be built». However, concerning the aforementioned goals of the research, a preliminary evaluation of the reliability of the sample and of its effective representativeness of the economic milieu it was in had to be carried out. Speaking of which, the “González de la Sierra” firm, despite not being one of the bigger in the Cadiz-based trade and rather settling on an intermediate level, appeared full of those feature commonly associated with the brokerage activities of the city. Therefore, this firm represented a meaningful item of analysis and study, not only for the size of the available archive sources and the width of the period they cover but also because of the compliance it showed to the commercial model singling out Cadiz in the 1700s and 1800s. On this specific point, detailing the study of the firms’ activities, describing the various forms of activities it entailed, seemed the most sensible choice. This analysis tackled both the more strictly commercial phenomena (such as importing foodstuffs from overseas and trading them in different markets, both home and abroad; the export of European products to the colonies and the other American territories; the huge variety of the traded goods and of the activities the firm carried out; the detection of the price and quantities of the traded goods) and those concerning management and finance (the dissemination of shops by the firm on Cadiz’s territory; the buildup of a real distribution network covering the whole of Spain and involving important representatives abroad; the adoption of management mechanisms very similar to those of a holding, despite the permanence of a backwards juridical status and scarce investments; the reliance on credit by means of the traditional instruments financing commerce and the prevalent use of human resources in carrying out entrepreneurial activities; the participation of the Cadiz-based firm to insurance and maritime transport initiatives). However, a fundamental part of the research has been based on the examination of the firm’s accounting books, looking for an index able to represent the overall activities, their income and outcomes, in order to reach an effective comparative summary. Carrying out this research allowed the reconstruction of, among other values, the net profits of the Cadiz-based firm for about a century, singling out such a variable as an essential internal indicator of the company’s doings, but also as an early element to verify and assess those phenomena affecting Cadiz’s economy during its transition phase from maximum prosperity to decline. At the end of such an effort in gathering, aggregating processing and interpreting the data concerning the company, an effective tool for comparison has been searched, in order to verify and assess the trends in income of the Cadiz-based company, compared with the fluctuations in Spanish economy, particularly that part thereof strictly linked with overseas trade. After careful evaluation, the author chose to employ Sardá’s wholesale prices index which, albeit not recent in construction, appeared as the more apt and trustworthy parameter to proceed with the comparison and rate it as useful for Cadiz’s trade, by virtue of its mixed composition and the presence of values concerning both home foodstuff and overseas goods. The outcome of the aforementioned comparison allowed a wider evaluation of the conclusions reached in analyzing Cadiz-based trade and the evolution of the “González de la Sierra” company, showing how the dynamics of profit approaches those of the economic cycle, of which prices are an essential indicator.
This volume is divided four parts. The first concerns itself with detailing Atlantic trade and the mercantile role of Cadiz in it during the XVIII and XIX centuries. The second part is dedicated to the main facts concerning the origin and development of the “González de la Sierra” trading company. The third part focuses on the period of maximum prosperity enjoyed by the Cadiz-based company within local economy. The fourth and last part describes the final period of the company’s activity, during Cadiz’s decline and offering a general evaluation of Spanish commercial bourgeoisie
Il sistema spagnolo nel circuito del commercio atlantico tra XVIII e XIX secolo: dinamiche economiche e interpretazioni storiografiche
No full textAl passaggio tra i due secoli che scandiva la fine dell’impero spagnolo e lo spostamento progressivo, ma ininterrotto, dei centri europei del commercio mondiale verso le aree continentali più avanzate, a cominciare dai territori britannici, apparve, paradossalmente, in tutta evidenza la connessione ineliminabile tra l’Europa e l’America Latina, tra gli spazi marittimi del Mediterraneo e dell’Atlantico, come unicum di una visione sistemica del mondo. La diacronia degli eventi al di qua e al di là dell’oceano, con il “blocco continentale”, si fermava, fornendo un quadro più complesso e articolato del nuovo meccanismo della competizione politica e commerciale, che avrebbe condotto a ripartire diversamente le gerarchie tra le potenze marittime e avrebbe
originato, altresì, come effetto non immediato, la “prima globalizzazione”, compiutasi nel momento più intenso del colonialismo, nel periodo compreso tra il ritorno al protezionismo degli anni Settanta dell’Ottocento e la prima guerra mondiale. La “Carrera de Indias” rappresentava, fin dalla sua genesi, la formazione del più importante tragitto commerciale del mondo occidentale, che collegava le due sponde dell’Atlantico, dando vita alla formazione di un’economia inedita, strettamente connessa all’evoluzione delle relazioni tra il Vecchio Continente e il Nuovo Mondo. La ricerca di un’impostazione equilibrata e convincente per l’interpretazione dell’evoluzione delle vicende dell’economia e del commercio atlantico ha permesso di concentrare l’interesse sui fatti di maggiore importanza e su una visione meno statica dei processi di mercato. Ne è scaturita una lettura articolata dei fenomeni che hanno accompagnato l’esperienza della “economia-mondo” ispanoamericana, capace di suscitare nuovi interrogativi e nuove opportunità di approfondimento sulla storia economica di un periodo cruciale per il destino della Spagna
The gap between Northern and Southern Italy from its origins to its current status. Historic evolution and economic profiles
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Business History in Italy and the New Digital Frontiers: Archives and IT Sources (La storia d’impresa in Italia e le nuove frontiere digitali: archivi e risorse telematiche)
No full textDal divario Nord-Sud alla convergenza: il modello dell’intervento straordinario e l’azione della Cassa per il Mezzogiorno, durante e oltre la golden age
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Le origini e l'evoluzione del divario Nord-Sud
No full textL'analisi sulle origini del divario meridionale, pur considerando le notevoli differenze di vedute sulle sue cause, ha permesso di chiarire che la "questione meridionale", intesa come cronica disparità nello sviluppo delle due parti del Paese, si è fatta sistemica dopo l’unificazione e nel corso dell’evoluzione industriale dell’Italia. Il distacco delle regioni meridionali, infatti, non era dovuto solo all’esistenza di condizioni generali di inferiorità rispetto al resto dell'Italia, ma al divario strutturale tra il Nord e il Sud, che è diventato sempre più intenso quanto più il Paese si modernizzava dal punto di vista produttivo, con una modalità di sviluppo di tipo dualistico. Tuttavia, nel corso di un secolo e mezzo, sono innegabili le trasformazioni avvenute nell’economia e nella società meridionale. A questi cambiamenti, non ha corrisposto un’analoga evoluzione delle condizioni relative del Mezzogiorno rispetto ai progressi compiuti dal Centro-Nord. La storia unitaria è stata connotata da un fenomeno di divergenza tra le due macroaree italiane, che solo durante la golden age hanno conosciuto un significativo avvicinamento, con una sostanziale riduzione del divario. Le vicende del periodo più recente hanno restituito al territorio meridionale, privato anche dell'intervento straordinario, la sua disparità, allontanandolo dall’obiettivo della convergenza. La Cassa per il Mezzogiorno ha rappresentato, dunque, il principale strumento per lo sviluppo del Sud, se si considera il complesso delle sue attività, che hanno operato con efficacia durante il "miracolo economico". Con la fine dell'intervento straordinario, la "questione meridionale", da grande tema di carattere nazionale, ha lasciato il passo a una visione frammentaria e priva di idee strategiche per il Mezzogiorno. Nell'ultima fase, poi, è emerso un nuovo ostacolo, costituito dal sorgere di una "questione settentrionale", scaturita dell'esigenza di una diffusa ripresa di iniziativa economica da parte delle categorie produttive del Nord. Questa spinta ha comportato il passaggio a nuove politiche, i cui esiti, però, hanno fatto rimpiangere il periodo più produttivo della Cassa e hanno riproposto con forza il dualismo economico italiano.The analysis concerning the origins of the Southern gap, without forgetting the significant differences within the opinions on its causes, allowed to clarify that the “Southern question”, i.e. the chronic inequality in the development of Italy’s two halves, became systematic after the Unification and during the industrial development of the country. The arrear plaguing Southern regions was not due, in fact, only to their general inferiority when compared with the rest of Italy, but also to the structural gap between Northern and Southern Italy, which became all the more significant as the country improved and updated its productive means, sporting a dual mode of development. However, during a century and a half, the society and economy of Southern Italy have undergone evident transformations. These changes were not backed by an evolution of Southern Italy’s situation as the one carrying itself out in the Northern half of the country. The whole history of united Italy featured a divergence between the two macroareas of Italy, which experienced a meaningful rapprochement and an effective bridging of their gap only during the golden age.
The more recent events gave back to Southern Italy, now bereft of extraordinary interventions as well, its inequality gap, leading it away from the goal of convergence.
Therefore, the Cassa per il Mezzogiorno has been the main tool for the development of Southern Italy, especially when taking into consideration the whole range of its activities, operating effectively during the years of the “economic miracle”.
With the end of the extraordinary interventions, the “Southern question”, until then tackled as an important, nationwide theme, was replaced by a fragmented vision for Southern Italy, lacking strategic ideas for this area and its main issues.
During the latter years, a new obstacle emerged in the form of a “Northern question”, born of the need for an effective revival of economic initiative by productive categories in Northern Italy. Such a move triggered a shift to new policies, whose outcomes could not compare with the more productive period of the Cassa and effectively brought the Italian economic dualism to the fore again
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