[go: up one dir, main page]

IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/bofitp/bdp2017_006.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The great Chinese inequality turnaround

Author

Listed:
  • Kanbur, Ravi
  • Wang, Yue
  • Zhang, Xiaobo
Abstract
China's high income and wealth inequality has long attracted the interest of policymakers and re-searchers, yet surprisingly little has been done since 2010 on inequality trends. Given China's evolving economic structure and the government's adoption of new policy tools in recent years, we revisit the latest data on Chinese inequality and assess the impacts of economic and policy changes on income distribution. After a quarter century of rapid, sustained increase, we see Chinese inequality plateauing and even diminishing. To verify this finding, we draw upon a range of data sources and measures of inequality. We examine inequality trends through decomposition by income source and population subgroups, and consider possible explanations such as policy shifts and structural trans-formation of the Chinese economy. The findings suggest that the narrative on Chinese inequality today should focus on clarifying the factors driving this apparent inequality turnaround.

Suggested Citation

  • Kanbur, Ravi & Wang, Yue & Zhang, Xiaobo, 2017. "The great Chinese inequality turnaround," BOFIT Discussion Papers 6/2017, Bank of Finland Institute for Emerging Economies (BOFIT).
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:bofitp:bdp2017_006
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/212869/1/bofit-dp2017-006.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Paul, Satya, 2004. "Income sources effects on inequality," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 73(1), pages 435-451, February.
    2. Zhang, Xiaobo & Yang, Jin & Wang, Shenglin, 2011. "China has reached the Lewis turning point," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 542-554.
    3. Fleisher, Belton & Li, Haizheng & Zhao, Min Qiang, 2010. "Human capital, economic growth, and regional inequality in China," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(2), pages 215-231, July.
    4. Meng, Xin & Gregory, Robert & Wang, Youjuan, 2005. "Poverty, inequality, and growth in urban China, 1986-2000," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 33(4), pages 710-729, December.
    5. Lee, Jongchul, 2013. "A provincial perspective on income inequality in urban China and the role of property and business income," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 140-150.
    6. Facundo Alvaredo & Lucas Chancel & Thomas Piketty & Emmanuel Saez & Gabriel Zucman, 2017. "Global Inequality Dynamics: New Findings from WID.world," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 107(5), pages 404-409, May.
    7. Satya Paul & Zhao Chen & Ming Lu, 2017. "Contribution of household income components to the level and rise of inequality in urban China," Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(2), pages 212-226, April.
    8. Ravi Kanbur & Xiaobo Zhang, 2005. "Fifty Years of Regional Inequality in China: a Journey Through Central Planning, Reform, and Openness," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 9(1), pages 87-106, February.
    9. Meng, Xin & Shen, Kailing & Xue, Sen, 2013. "Economic reform, education expansion, and earnings inequality for urban males in China, 1988–2009," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 227-244.
    10. Chi, Wei & Li, Bo & Yu, Qiumei, 2011. "Decomposition of the increase in earnings inequality in urban China: A distributional approach," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 299-312, September.
    11. Chen, Zhihong & Ge, Ying & Lai, Huiwen, 2011. "Foreign Direct Investment and Wage Inequality: Evidence from China," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(8), pages 1322-1332, August.
    12. John Knight & LI Shi & WAN Haiyuan, 2016. "The Increasing Inequality of Wealth in China, 2002-2013," Economics Series Working Papers 816, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    13. Wei, Shang-Jin & Zhang, Xiaobo & Liu, Yin, 2017. "Home ownership as status competition: Some theory and evidence," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 169-186.
    14. Zhang, Chuanchuan, 2015. "Income inequality and access to housing: Evidence from China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 261-271.
    15. Zhang, Chunni & Xu, Qi & Zhou, Xiang & Zhang, Xiaobo & Xie, Yu, 2014. "Are poverty rates underestimated in China? New evidence from four recent surveys," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 410-425.
    16. Robinson, Sherman, 1976. "A Note on the U Hypothesis Relating Income Inequality and Economic Development," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 66(3), pages 437-440, June.
    17. Cheng, Yuk-shing & Li, Sung-ko, 2006. "Income inequality and efficiency: A decomposition approach and applications to China," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 91(1), pages 8-14, April.
    18. Shang-Jin Wei & Xiaobo Zhang, 2011. "The Competitive Saving Motive: Evidence from Rising Sex Ratios and Savings Rates in China," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 119(3), pages 511-564.
    19. repec:wyi:journl:002165 is not listed on IDEAS
    20. Yanan Li & Ravi Kanbur & Carl Lin, 2019. "Minimum Wage Competition between Local Governments in China," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(12), pages 2479-2494, December.
    21. Chi, Wei, 2012. "Capital income and income inequality: Evidence from urban China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(2), pages 228-239.
    22. Valerio Mendoza, Octasiano M., 2016. "Preferential policies and income inequality: Evidence from Special Economic Zones and Open Cities in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 228-240.
    23. Christoph Lakner & Branko Milanovic, 2016. "Global Income Distribution: From the Fall of the Berlin Wall to the Great Recession," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 30(2), pages 203-232.
    24. Luc Christiaensen & Lei Pan & Sangui Wang, 2013. "Pathways out of poverty in lagging regions: evidence from rural western China," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 44(1), pages 25-44, January.
    25. Wan, Guanghua & Lu, Ming & Chen, Zhao, 2006. "The inequality-growth nexus in the short and long run: Empirical evidence from China," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 654-667, December.
    26. Li, Chao & Gibson, John, 2013. "Rising Regional Inequality in China: Fact or Artifact?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 16-29.
    27. Daron Acemoglu & James A. Robinson, 2002. "The Political Economy of the Kuznets Curve," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 6(2), pages 183-203, June.
    28. Golley, Jane & Meng, Xin, 2011. "Has China run out of surplus labour?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 555-572.
    29. John Knight, 2014. "Inequality in China: An Overview," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 29(1), pages 1-19.
    30. Ravi Kanbur & Juzhong Zhuang, 2013. "Urbanization and Inequality in Asia," Asian Development Review, MIT Press, vol. 30(1), pages 131-147, March.
    31. Fan, Shenggen & Kanbur, Ravi & Zhang, Xiaobo, 2010. "China’s Regional Disparities: Experience and Policy," Working Papers 57041, Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management.
    32. Appleton, Simon & Song, Lina & Xia, Qingjie, 2014. "Understanding Urban Wage Inequality in China 1988–2008: Evidence from Quantile Analysis," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1-13.
    33. GOH, Chor-ching & LUO, Xubei & ZHU, Nong, 2009. "Income growth, inequality and poverty reduction: A case study of eight provinces in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(3), pages 485-496, September.
    34. Demurger, Sylvie & Fournier, Martin & Li, Shi, 2006. "Urban income inequality in China revisited (1988-2002)," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 93(3), pages 354-359, December.
    35. Terry Sicular & Yue Ximing & Björn Gustafsson & Li Shi, 2007. "The Urban–Rural Income Gap And Inequality In China," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 53(1), pages 93-126, March.
    36. Zhang, Xiaobo, 2006. "Fiscal decentralization and political centralization in China: Implications for growth and inequality," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 713-726, December.
    37. WANG, Zuxiang & SMYTH, Russell & NG, Yew-Kwang, 2009. "A new ordered family of Lorenz curves with an application to measuring income inequality and poverty in rural China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 218-235, June.
    38. John Gibson & Chao Li, 2017. "The Erroneous Use Of China'S Population And Per Capita Data: A Structured Review And Critical Test," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 905-922, September.
    39. Xiaobo Zhang & Kevin Honglin Zhang, 2002. "Regional Inequality," Chapters, in: Shang-Jin Wei & Guanzhong James Wen & Huizhong Zhou (ed.), The Globalization of the Chinese Economy, chapter 8, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    40. Deqiang Liu, 2015. "Has the Chinese economy passed the Lewis turning point?," Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(3), pages 404-422, July.
    41. Luo,Xubei & Wang,Yue-000541442 & Zhang,Xiaobo, 2019. "E-Commerce Development and Household Consumption Growth in China," Policy Research Working Paper Series 8810, The World Bank.
    42. Chan, Kenneth S. & Zhou, Xianbo & Pan, Zhewen, 2014. "The growth and inequality nexus: The case of China," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 34(C), pages 230-236.
    43. Shenggen Fan & Ravi Kanbur & Shang-Jin Wei & Xiaobo Zhang, 2013. "The Economics of China: Successes and Challenges," NBER Working Papers 19648, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    44. Li,Shi & Sato,Hiroshi & Sicular,Terry (ed.), 2013. "Rising Inequality in China," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107002913, September.
    45. Banerjee, Abhijit V & Duflo, Esther, 2003. "Inequality and Growth: What Can the Data Say?," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 267-299, September.
    46. Cheong, Tsun Se & Wu, Yanrui, 2014. "The impacts of structural transformation and industrial upgrading on regional inequality in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 339-350.
    47. Anand, Sudhir & Kanbur, S. M. R., 1993. "Inequality and development A critique," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 19-43, June.
    48. Li, Tingting & Lai, Jennifer T. & Wang, Yong & Zhao, Dingtao, 2016. "Long-run relationship between inequality and growth in post-reform China: New evidence from dynamic panel model," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 41(C), pages 238-252.
    49. Alwyn Young, 1995. "The Tyranny of Numbers: Confronting the Statistical Realities of the East Asian Growth Experience," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 110(3), pages 641-680.
    50. Douglas Gollin, 2014. "The Lewis Model: A 60-Year Retrospective," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 28(3), pages 71-88, Summer.
    51. Kanbur, Ravi & Zhang, Xiaobo, 1999. "Which Regional Inequality? The Evolution of Rural-Urban and Inland-Coastal Inequality in China from 1983 to 1995," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 686-701, December.
    52. Shen, Yan & Yao, Yang, 2008. "Does grassroots democracy reduce income inequality in China?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 92(10-11), pages 2182-2198, October.
    53. Lerman, Robert I & Yitzhaki, Shlomo, 1985. "Income Inequality Effects by Income," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 67(1), pages 151-156, February.
    54. CAI, Fang & DU, Yang, 2011. "Wage increases, wage convergence, and the Lewis turning point in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 601-610.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kanbur, Ravi & Wang, Yue & Zhang, Xiaobo, 2021. "The great Chinese inequality turnaround," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(2), pages 467-482.
    2. repec:zbw:bofitp:2017_006 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Martin Ravallion & Shaohua Chen, 2022. "Is that really a Kuznets curve? Turning points for income inequality in China," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 20(4), pages 749-776, December.
    4. Zhou, Yixiao & Tyers, Rod, 2019. "Automation and inequality in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    5. Peng Bin & Andrea Fracasso, 2017. "Regional Consumption Inequality in China: An Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition at the Prefectural Level," Growth and Change, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(3), pages 459-486, September.
    6. Mu, Ren, 2022. "Perceived relative income, fairness, and the role of government: Evidence from a randomized survey experiment in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    7. Xiaosu Ye & Lie Ma & Kunhui Ye & Jiantao Chen & Qiu Xie, 2017. "Analysis of Regional Inequality from Sectoral Structure, Spatial Policy and Economic Development: A Case Study of Chongqing, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-17, April.
    8. Thomas Piketty & Li Yang & Gabriel Zucman, 2019. "Capital Accumulation, Private Property, and Rising Inequality in China, 1978–2015," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 109(7), pages 2469-2496, July.
    9. Qu, Zhaopeng & Zhao, Zhong, 2017. "Glass ceiling effect in urban China: Wage inequality of rural-urban migrants during 2002–2007," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 42(C), pages 118-144.
    10. Jing Li & Tsun Se Cheong & Jianfa Shen & Dahai Fu, 2019. "Urbanization And Rural–Urban Consumption Disparity: Evidence From China," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 64(04), pages 983-996, September.
    11. John Knight, 2014. "Inequality in China: An Overview," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 29(1), pages 1-19.
    12. Hrushikesh Mallick & Mantu Kumar Mahalik & Hemachandra Padhan, 2020. "Does globalization exacerbate income inequality in two largest emerging economies? The role of FDI and remittances inflows," International Review of Economics, Springer;Happiness Economics and Interpersonal Relations (HEIRS), vol. 67(4), pages 443-480, December.
    13. Liu, Xueyue & Zuo, Sharon Xuejing, 2023. "From equality to polarization: Changes in urban China’s gender earnings gap from 1988 to 2016," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 205(C), pages 303-337.
    14. Dong, Xiao-Ying & Hao, Yu, 2018. "Would income inequality affect electricity consumption? Evidence from China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 215-227.
    15. Shenggen Fan & Ravi Kanbur & Shang-Jin Wei & Xiaobo Zhang, 2013. "The Economics of China: Successes and Challenges," NBER Working Papers 19648, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    16. Gravier-Rymaszewska, Joanna & Tyrowicz, Joanna & Kochanowicz, Jacek, 2010. "Intra-provincial inequalities and economic growth in China," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 237-258, September.
    17. Kanbur, Ravi, 2017. "Structural Transformation and Income Distribution: Kuznets and Beyond," IZA Discussion Papers 10636, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Tsun Se Cheong & Yanrui Wu, 2013. "Globalization and Regional Inequality," Economics Discussion / Working Papers 13-10, The University of Western Australia, Department of Economics.
    19. James Alm & Yongzheng Liu, 2014. "China's Tax-for-Fee Reform and Village Inequality," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 42(1), pages 38-64, March.
    20. Iris Claus & Les Oxley & Chen Wang & Guanghua Wan & Dan Yang, 2014. "Income Inequality In The People'S Republic Of China: Trends, Determinants, And Proposed Remedies," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 686-708, September.
    21. Sumie Sato & Mototsugu Fukushige, 2012. "The Chinese economy and income inequality among East Asian countries," China Economic Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 5(1), pages 1-15.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • O53 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - Asia including Middle East

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:bofitp:bdp2017_006. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/bofitfi.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.