ABSTRACT
From the 1980s onwards, patterns of economic development across the globe have changed significantly. The opening-up of former communist and socialist national economies has produced a new economic tapestry that is continuing to evolve with mind-boggling speed. The accompanying growth and prevalence of information and communications technologies has increased the speed of change, resulting in economies appearing to suffer disturbances and shocks with increasing frequency. As a result, the spatial nature of economic development is now firmly viewed as a phenomenon subject to evolutionary and dynamic forces.
