This study deals with the role of spatial accessibility to agglomeration economies in the change in spatial structure of industrial employment for the case of the Metropolitan Region of Barcelona. Using the growth in gross density of municipal employment between 1986 and 1996 for the manufacturing industry as an indicator of changes in the spatial structure of employment, an exploration is made of the spatial impact of agglomeration economies operating on a local scale –the municipality and three areas 5, 8 and 12 kilometres away from the municipality itself–, agglomeration economies emerging from Central Business District and the main specialised subcentres in the region, and the network economies associated with the total jobs in the region, access to which depends on the distance from the main transport infrastructures.

Key words: Agglomeration economies, manufacturing employment growth, intra-metropolitan location, spatial structure.
JEL classification: R11, R12, R14, R30, L60.