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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 April 2015
Modeling local and regional manufacturing activity is an important component of economic research. Models that explain the levels of local aggregates, such as employment, aid the efforts of state and local governments to influence the future course of economic activity. Such models also aid private decision makers in their efforts to develop feasibility studies of projects representing different investment alternatives. Input-output and economic base studies are the most common means of modeling local economic activity. These studies, though useful in assessing the multiplier effects of changes in local manufacturing activity, do not capture the temporal influence of national economic trends or the specific community characteristics responsible for varying levels of manufacturing activity. Econometric models, being more flexible and less expensive, may better serve the latter purposes.