Finance and Industrialization in Italy, 1894–1914

Extract

My thesis is a study of finance and industrialization in Italy between 1894 and 1914. Alexander Gerschenkron has argued that the years between 1896 and 1908 in Italy were the years of her “big spurt,” basing his analysis largely on an index of industrial production which he prepared for the period 1881-1913. In many cases the value of output was estimated by the value of inputs; in these instances, value added by industry was understated. In a number of instances the data problems were such that the estimates were very crude approximations of actual production. Nevertheless, when these indexes are combined with other available data on Italian industrial development, the years 1894-1914 stand out as the period during which the nation created her industrial base; only the expansion of the post-World War II years exceeded the growth rates achieved during this period.