{"id":11884,"date":"2026-01-23T12:40:14","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T12:40:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/?post_type=publikacio&p=11884"},"modified":"2026-01-23T12:43:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T12:43:30","slug":"caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions","status":"publish","type":"publikacio","link":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/","title":{"rendered":"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions<\/h1>\n

Authors: Csaba Lak\u00f3cai<\/a>, Luigi Capoani,<\/p>\n

In: Regional Statistics, Vol. 16. No. 1. 2026<\/em><\/p>\n

DOI: 10.15196\/RS160104 \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Abstract<\/h1>\n

Building upon the traditional concept of the \u201cBlue Banana\u201d as Europe\u2019s economic core area, this study examines the multifaceted impacts and underlying causes of r\u00e9gi\u00f3n\u00e1l competitiveness disparities across Europe. In particular, it delves into Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), along with the Mediterranean territories of the European Union (EU), analysing the ongoing economic and urban transformations within these areas while also assessing similar patterns in Western and Northern Europe. Leveraging the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics 2 (NUTS 2) regional breakdown and data sourced from the EU\u2019s latest regional competitiveness index (RCI) report, this study conducts a comprehensive analysis of spatial concentrations within the EU. The findings suggest that although some regions of the Blue Banana maintain their relative dominance in regional competitiveness, significant recent developments in other European regions indicate that the concept may be losing relevance. In particular, the CEE regions \u2013 especially their capital regions \u2013 converged toward the standards set by the Blue Banana. The results of the spatial regression model on the RCI in 2022 substantiate the conclusion that the Blue Banana is no longer a significant territorial concentration. Moreover, the results of the spatial regression model on the changes in RCI scores between 2016 and 2022 indicate that the less affluent CEE and Mediterranean regions have greater development potential than the wealthier western and northern egions, further challenging the traditional notion of the Blue Banana.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions Authors: Csaba Lak\u00f3cai, Luigi Capoani, In: Regional Statistics, Vol. 16. No. 1. 2026 DOI: 10.15196\/RS160104 \u00a0 Abstract Building upon the traditional concept of the \u201cBlue Banana\u201d as Europe\u2019s economic core area, this study examines the multifaceted impacts and underlying causes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":11883,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[104,100],"tags":[881,262,940,263,941],"class_list":["post-11884","publikacio","type-publikacio","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-external-publications","category-publications","tag-blue-banana-en","tag-central-and-eastern-europe-en","tag-mediterranean-en","tag-regional-competitiveness-en","tag-spatial-correlation-analysis-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCaponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions Authors: Csaba Lak\u00f3cai, Luigi Capoani, In: Regional Statistics, Vol. 16. No. 1. 2026 DOI: 10.15196\/RS160104 \u00a0 Abstract Building upon the traditional concept of the \u201cBlue Banana\u201d as Europe\u2019s economic core area, this study examines the multifaceted impacts and underlying causes […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"VGI\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-23T12:43:30+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"823\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1100\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/\",\"name\":\"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-01-23T12:40:14+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-23T12:43:30+00:00\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png\",\"width\":823,\"height\":1100},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/\",\"name\":\"VGI\",\"description\":\"Vil\u00e1ggazdas\u00e1gi Int\u00e9zet\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#organization\",\"name\":\"VGI\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Group-960-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Group-960-1.png\",\"width\":199,\"height\":57,\"caption\":\"VGI\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI","og_description":"Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions Authors: Csaba Lak\u00f3cai, Luigi Capoani, In: Regional Statistics, Vol. 16. No. 1. 2026 DOI: 10.15196\/RS160104 \u00a0 Abstract Building upon the traditional concept of the \u201cBlue Banana\u201d as Europe\u2019s economic core area, this study examines the multifaceted impacts and underlying causes […]","og_url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/","og_site_name":"VGI","article_modified_time":"2026-01-23T12:43:30+00:00","og_image":[{"width":823,"height":1100,"url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png","type":"image\/png"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/","url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/","name":"Caponi, L., Lak\u00f3cai Cs.: Spatial dynamics of competitiveness: a comparative analysis of the Blue Banana and emerging EU regions - VGI","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png","datePublished":"2026-01-23T12:40:14+00:00","dateModified":"2026-01-23T12:43:30+00:00","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/publikacio\/caponi-l-lakocai-cs-spatial-dynamics-of-competitiveness-a-comparative-analysis-of-the-blue-banana-and-emerging-eu-regions\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/publikacio-sablon-honlapra.png","width":823,"height":1100},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#website","url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/","name":"VGI","description":"Vil\u00e1ggazdas\u00e1gi Int\u00e9zet","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#organization","name":"VGI","url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Group-960-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-Group-960-1.png","width":199,"height":57,"caption":"VGI"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publikacio\/11884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publikacio"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/publikacio"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vgi.krtk.hu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}