Abstract:
In the article, the authors consider the theoretical aspects of the distribution of transactional economic activities, industries, networks and clusters in the economic space. Transactional industries are integrated types of economic activities related to both the direct rendering services of transactional character and their infrastructure support. The main forms of the allocation of transactional industries in the economic space are networks and clusters, which are usually opposed to each other as the explaining factors of territorial development. At the same time, researchers often ignore the evolutionary aspect related to the allocation of proto- and post-cluster network structures. Many transactional networks localized in space are proto-cluster structures (prototypes of clusters). Such networks evolve on the basis of the regular or constant exchange, communication, service, transport and other types of interactions. They consist of the set of nodes (interacting firms) and their links (transactions and relations), showing the considerable variations of quantity and scale of nodes, as well as the intensity of communications. In turn, the developed («mature») transactional clusters are most active in the formation of inter-cluster networks of interactions, collaborations and mutual training on the basis of the correspondence of cognitive, institutional, social, organizational and other competencies and abilities. Transactional networks and clusters are characterized, on the one hand, by the intermediate position between models of rather high hierarchy and orientation to hubs (key nodes of network «core») and, on the other hand, by decentralized, deprived of hierarchy structures with a prevalence of horizontal transactions between the participants of single type.
