| After more than 70 years of an inveterate process of incomplete industrialization and failed development, the state reforms and market deregulation of the 1990s have finally shown Argentina the tools it needs to break out of this cycle and move forward to achieve sustainable economic development, perhaps for the first time in the nation's history. This research makes a comprehensive and systemic assessment of Argentine industry, responding to the challenges of modern competitiveness, examining how it is generated and enhanced as a precursor of national wealth creation.;First, Argentina's import and export industries and their evolution have been examined over time to detect patterns in industry's international success. This thesis corroborates that competitive industries are heavily dependant on natural resources and their further processing into industrial commodities; it also confirms the growing participation over exports of industrialized products with medium technology content.;Second, the evolution of Argentina's socio-economic context has been evaluated, through an eclectic approach. The economic chaos and uncertainty of the times served to change the strategic focus of government and firms from competitiveness enhancement toward survival. This thesis confirms that the nation's socio-economic context indirectly influenced the competitiveness process through priority changes in strategic decision-making and public policy.;Based on three case studies, this thesis confirms that deficient infrastructure, in terms of stock and quality, and shallow capital markets were -- and still are -- critical factors in Argentina's lack of competitiveness enhancement in the 30-year period beginning in 1970. This deficiency is also observed in a weak clustering in the three industries analyzed due to the lack of internationally competitive related and supporting industries.;The approach is, in essence, microeconomic and intuitionalist. In the latter case, institutionalism has been considered as a necessary approach to evaluate the role of government in influencing and supporting Argentina's industrial competitiveness.;From the analysis of these three cases, this thesis suggests that a strong institutional infrastructure development can greatly enhance industry's competitiveness, preventing the rise of government interventionism and fostering the concept of the role of government as one that positively influences competitiveness conditions.;Policy and strategic implications for both government and firms are discussed. |
