Dimitrios Manoukas (p), Federica Maria Rossi, Tomasso Cigognetti

Zsófia Vas

The rapid increase of remote work and the growing prominence of e-commerce have significantly reshaped both professional and consumer behaviors with additional territorial effects. Advances in digital technologies enable employees to perform their tasks away from traditional office settings, thereby affecting work routines and spatial organization. At the same time, online shopping has become increasingly popular among consumers, prompting the expansion of business-to-consumer (B2C) platforms and transforming last-mile logistics. These parallel trends hold considerable implications for urban growth and regional development. By focusing on the interconnection between remote work and online shopping, this study contributes to a broader understanding of how digital shifts influence everyday life, consumption patterns, and territorial transformations.

The Multiscope Italian National Survey on Families – “Aspects of Daily Life” by ISTAT is a survey that gathers essential information on individuals’ and families’ daily activities. In its latest editions (2021 and 2022), it introduced questions about the increasing trend of working from home. By combining this information with e-commerce preferences, it becomes possible to assess the propensity of remote workers to shop online and to explore the connection between these two expanding digital trends, which are shaping the lifestyles of millions of people.

This study aims to shed light on the relationship between remote work and online shopping, analyzing the strength of this link (objective). To achieve this, an econometric model (logit model) is employed to examine the relationship between these two phenomena (methodology). Considering data about online shopping preferences and remote work ability and habits, we attempt to explore the profile of the consumers, in accordance with their territorial and demographic characteristics. These upcoming digital trends interconnect both with work-life balance and the economic context of the consumers and their locality.

Our findings provide valuable insights for scholars, logistics companies, and policymakers, helping them better understand the evolving habits of individuals in both work and consumption patterns along suggestions for future research on the impact on their respective territory.

Zsófia Vas (p), Izabella Szakálné Kanó , György Vida

Zhiwu Wei

With the expansion of digital technologies, understanding spatiality and the role of agglomeration economies is becoming increasingly important, particularly in the information and communication sector. The sector's innovation activities and the relatedness with other industries play a key role in driving digitalization and ensuring sustainable economic growth. Given the significance of digitalization and the ICT sector in catching-up economies, this study analyzes the spatial distribution and economic role of the sector across the regions of Central and Eastern Europe.
The study examines the spatial concentration of the ICT sector and the specialization of NUTS3-level regions, distinguishing capital, intermediate metropolitan, intermediate non-metropolitan and rural areas. The analysis is based on employment data in the period of 2010–2020. The results indicate that despite the progress of digitalization, the ICT sector growth dynamically and remains highly spatially concentrated in the regions of Central and Eastern Europe, particularly in capital regions, while the role of modern business services is also expanding within agglomeration economies. The research confirms the presence of division of labour among different types of regions, highlighting the specialized nature of capital and rural areas, and underscores the need for place-sensitive development policies.

Zhiwu Wei (p), Neil Lee, Yohan Iddawela

Ana Claudia Laprovitera Arruda

The rapid spread of mobile internet has had profound economic and social consequences. In this paper, we consider the impact of mobile internet on household wealth in the Philippines. Identification comes from the rollout of 0.27 million geocoded cell towers across the Philippines islands, augmented with an instrumental variable approach based on distance to submarine cable landing points. We find evidence that better mobile internet access leads to improvements in household wealth, a finding which is robust to empirical challenges. This positive effect persists across different education groups and appears to be more pronounced in urban areas compared to rural ones. Combining individual survey datasets with POI data, we investigate potential mechanisms. Our analysis reveals that mobile internet connectivity significantly stimulates activities in several key economic sectors. Furthermore, we find that mobile internet access enhances male employment opportunities, though this positive effect does not extend to female employment. Based on these results and the literature, we suggest policymakers should (i) improve cell tower coverage, particularly in areas further from landing points, and (ii) accompany efforts to improve internet coverage with digital literacy programmes and efforts to encourage access to technology.

Ana Claudia Laprovitera Arruda (p)

Dimitrios Manoukas

The concepts of structure and strategic decisions have been central to various theoretical approaches in economic development, particularly within the structuralist tradition. Celso Furtado, one of the leading figures of structuralist economics in Brazil, provided a critical analysis of the structural inequalities that hinder economic development in peripheral nations, with a special focus on Brazil.

The notion of structure extends beyond the mere organization of economic sectors or institutions. It encompasses a set of historical, political, social, and economic conditions that shape a nation's development trajectory, either constraining or enabling its progress. These structures, often inherited from the colonial era, have historically reinforced patterns of dependence, inequality, and subordination of peripheral countries to the core economies of global capitalism.

Meanwhile, strategic decisions refer to the fundamental choices a country must make to overcome the constraints imposed by its structural conditions. These decisions involve long-term public policies, critical investments, and actions aimed at fostering economic and technological autonomy. Their ultimate goal is to break the cycle of dependence and underdevelopment by charting a path toward sustainable and inclusive growth.

This article revisits the concepts of structure and strategic decisions in economic development, emphasizing the contemporary relevance of Celso Furtado’s work and the struturalists.
In particular, it examines the impact of rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and the growing influence of Big Techs on peripheral economies. The structuralist perspective provides a valuable framework for rethinking development strategies that integrate economic, social, and political dimensions while adapting to new global realities.