Investigaciones de Historia Economica最新文献

Gender inequality in human capital has been shown to be an important indicator of economic development, but has remained unexplored in a European history perspective. Using a new and large historical database on male and female literacy rates, new evidence is presented on the distribution of gender inequality in human capital in European regions in 1900 and 1960. An analysis is made of the distribution of fertility rates to determine the relationship between gender equality in education and the demographic transition. The results show a reversal of educational fortunes and regional fertility rates. Regions with lower fertility rates in the past tend to display higher rates today.

The gold standard was the dominant monetary system between the late 1870's and the First World War. Spain never joined the system. The exchange rate of the peseta was flexible. The consequences of not adopting the gold standard are still a matter of controversy. Some of the studies stress the negative impact this could have for the Spanish long term economic growth. The opposite view points out that the cost of being part of this monetary system was unaffordable for a peripheral country like Spain. The debate is still open.

The Mexican tax system in the 1800s was almost entirely composed of indirect taxes. However, the Revolution opened a window for change. In the early 1920s, President Alvaro Obregón created two direct taxes by decree: the federal property tax and the income tax. It was a clear disruption of the status quo, naturally raising opposition from those affected by the new taxes. Yet the attempt to establish the federal property tax failed, while the income tax was a relative success. This paper explains the divergent fates of these two tax decrees. In order to explain the divergent outcomes I focus on the political struggles behind both decrees. I argue that the roles played by both the opposition groups and the government in the two struggles differed greatly and help explain the fates of these taxes. The political and ideological background behind both tax struggles also help to explain the failure of the federal property tax and the implementation of the income tax.

This article aims at describing, analysing and interpreting the credit scoring of 318 creditworthy individuals investigated by an agency hired by the Banco Nacional de México for that purpose. It answers questions such: who were the subjects of credit of the Zamora branch of the Bank between 1905 and 1907? Was the capital critical for a subject to be eligible for credit or minimise the risks? Was the individual's occupation important in the credit evaluation? Was owning property a determining factor for good credit or be considered to be without risk and acceptable? Was gender a key factor to be accepted as credit worthy? Was belonging to social networks and influential roles in society essential to be a creditworthy subject? How important was the reputation of the individual to be qualified for access to credit?

The current transport infrastructures in northwest Africa preserves the routes designed during the colonial occupation. Ports and railways were deployed in order to serve the imperial economic interests. These infrastructures encouraged the growth of the foreign trade that was supported by the massive exportation of cash-crops and mining commodities. Moreover, the political and military control over the territories was notably increased. This paper deals with the analysis of the evolution of the maritime façades of the Mediterranean Maghreb (Algeria, Tunisia) and the northwest Atlantic Africa (Morocco, Senegal) during the French colonial rule. Through a comparative perspective study, port traffic indicators and trade statistics are used to analyse the port concentration process and the modernisation of transport infrastructures. This paper offers a first approach on the evolution of regional maritime networks during the colonial period and the creation of port concentration processes.