New and small firms in expanding markets

The recent expansion of markets and increased standardization has not, as might be expected, been associated with an expansion of the role of larger firms. Recent data on new and small firms has indicated a substantial and expanding role for new and small firms in the global economy. There appear to be substantial differences between sectors, as competitive advantage in some is achieved through aggregation (upsizing) and in others thorough disaggregation (downsizing) of the productive process. New data is providing new knowledge on the role of firm size and age on economic growth. The advanced economices of the future will not be dominated by old, large firms.