It remains to be seen, for example whether China can continue to develop as a market economy while still retaining an authoritarian communist political system.

In the United Kingdom, for example, the sheer overwhelming dominance of London makes it extremely for provincial cities to develop more than a very restricted financial function. London, in that sense, is akin to the notorious upas tree, a fabulous Javanese tree so poisonous that it destroys all life for many miles around itself.

One of the most striking trends, since at least the 1960's, has been for employment in services to grow far more rapidly than employment in manufacturing. It is this trend that has led to the view that developed economies have become de-industrialized and that they are now effectively service economies.

It remains to be seen, for example whether China can continue to develop as a market economy while still retaining an authoritarian communist political system.

One of the most striking developments has been the rise, fall and rise again of the semiconductor industry of the United States, which is, once again, the dominant player in the most advanced semiconductor product-markets.

Reality is far more complex and messy than many of the grander themes and explanations would have us believe.

Every production network has spatiality - the particular geographical configuration and extent of its component elements and the links between them.