Authors:

I.A. Antipin, N.Yu. Vlasova, E.A. Shishkina

Ural State University of Economics, Ekaterinburg, Russia

Abstract:

Economic well-being within agglomeration spaces is highly heterogeneous and fragmented. There is a persistent contradiction within agglomerations between the concentration of economic activity in their cores and the uneven socio-economic development of peripheral territories. Standard statistical approaches capture static disparities in territorial development, but do not assess the dynamics of intermunicipal convergence. This study aims to develop and test a method for identifying types of economic well-being of municipalities in a large agglomeration and assessing the directions of intermunicipal convergence. The methodological foundation lies in the theory of agglomeration effects and modern multidimensional approaches to measuring economic well-being. Among the research methods used are taxonomic ones, constructing a composite index of well-being, K-means clustering, and spatial econometric models (β- and σ-convergence) using Python. This work draws upon data from the RF Federal State Statistics Service (Rosstat) that are published in the passports of urban districts included in the Ekaterinburg urban agglomeration. The findings revealed that spatial inequality is structurally stable and that there is no statistically significant overall convergence among the municipalities with respect to the composite index of well-being. The lack of overall convergence is shown to conceal the heterogeneity of intra-agglomeration processes. We have identified three taxonomic types of municipalities: the core, satellite territories, and disadvantaged territories. The taxonomy membership remains stable for the core and most peripheral areas, but it is transitional in nature for one-third of the municipalities within the agglomeration. Thus, existing mechanisms fail to significantly reduce disparities in economic well-being across the municipalities. The results substantiate the need to move from universal measures to a differentiated, targeted strategy for guiding municipal development.

Keywords: economic well-being; municipality; agglomeration; typology; convergence.

Download article

For citation: Antipin I.A., Vlasova N.Yu., Shishkina E.A. (2026). A research into municipalities’ economic well-being in a large urban agglomeration. Upravlenets / The Manager, vol. 17, no. 5, pp. 69–84. DOI: 10.29141/2218-5003-2026-17-5-5. EDN: PZFOUA.