Kenneth Castillo-Hidalgo
Kenneth Castillo-Hidalgo
Embedded Files
Welcome! I am a PhD in Applied Economics from Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain). Currently, I work as a Postdoctoral fellow in Department ABC, at Politecnico di Milano (Italy).
My main research interests are in regional studies and economic geography, with a focus on regional development, market structure, technological change, and regional inequalities. My recent work explores how market concentration and digitalization shape income inequalities from a territorial perspective.
In 2024, I was honored to receive the 1st Place of the RSAI Young Researchers Prize.
Before entering academia, I worked as a Financial Consultant for mining workers unions in the context of collective bargaining processes.
You can find my CV here
Research
Research
Publications
This paper explores the existence of inter-industry agglomeration economies in a developing country such as Chile, which is highly dependent on natural resources—especially mining. We estimate the impact of the spatial concentration of firms supplying knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) on mining labor productivity using individual- and aggregate-level data. In addition, we conduct a spatial analysis to examine spatial dependencies and potential spillover effects. The results suggest that KIBS agglomeration is positively associated with the productivity of mining sector workers, and that this effect translates into broader territorial productivity gains at the functional labor market area level. The exploratory spatial analysis reveals spatial spillovers from KIBS agglomeration. These findings yield relevant policy implications regarding the location of knowledge-intensive firms, the promotion of a knowledge-based economy linked to natural resources, and strategies for subnational development.
Starting from the superstar firm hypothesis of Autor et al. (2020), the paper conceptually analyses the regional industrial market power-induced effect on profit shares elaborating on the role of space. Our idea is that an industrial market power-induced effect exists, but this is heterogeneous across regions due to: i) the different capacity of regions to host superstar firms; ii) the multiplicative negative effects on inequalities that propagate in the area through the local filière of companies. We test these assumptions in European Union regions, thanks to a micro-level approach able to capture the real income redistribution between capital and labor remuneration, in different regions. The industry market power-induced effect on profit share is estimated for 82 industries competing at European level, observed between 2013 and 2019. Our findings suggest that the increase in the firms’ profit share is positively affected by an increasing industrial market power, and that this is higher, the larger the number of superstar firms located in the region. This effect is more intense in regions highly specialized in the same industry as the superstar firms located there.
Working papers / Work in progress
Primary sector activities agglomeration and local human capital distribution
Spatial social capital and primary sector activities
Expansionary effects of market power increases
On the persistence of top firms: The role of sectoral complexity and regional embeddedness in Europe
Platformization and functional income inequalities
Where I am from
Where I am from
I was born in Antofagasta, in northern Chile.
The city grows between the Pacific Ocean and the Coastal Range, along the edge of the Atacama Desert.
Mining resources, the desert, and the sea have always been essential elements of this territory.
Antofagasta stands as a major growth hub in the northern zone of the country, characterized by its intensive mining activity, railways that run through the city, a multicultural population, and strong global connectivity through its port.
The Antofagasta Region is home to some of the world’s most significant copper and lithium deposits, hosting several of the largest copper producers on a global scale.
Beyond its economic importance, the natural beauty of the desert—embraced by the cold waters of the ocean—makes the Antofagasta Region a unique place on the planet.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse