Technologically related diversification: One size does not fit all European regions

Building on the case of European Union (EU) regions, we study the macroeconomic impact of related diversification. We use an indicator of technological related variety in combination with stochastic frontier estimation and a well-established general equilibrium model to assess the rationale for related diversification and to understand the relevance of different region-specific policies. The results suggest that related diversification has a greater potential for less advanced regions than for more advanced ones. This has interesting implications for industrial policy, calling for a differentiated approach depending on the technological space and level of development of different regions.