The "cluster theory" has become one of the main concepts promoting regional competitiveness, innovation, and growth. As most studies focus on measures of concentration of one industrial branch in order to identify regional clusters, the appropriate analysis of specific vertical relations within a valueadding chain is developing in this discussion. This paper tries to identify interrelated sectors via national inputoutput tables with the help of Minimal Flow Analysis by Schnabl (1994). The regionalization of these national industry templates is carried out with the allocation of branchspecific production values on regional employment. As a result, the paper shows concentrations of vertical clusters in only 27 of 439 German NUTS3 regions. -- |