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Effects of income inequality on China's economic growth

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  • Qin, Duo
  • Cagas, Marie Anne
  • Ducanes, Geoffrey
  • He, Xinhua
  • Liu, Rui
  • Liu, Shiguo

Abstract

A pilot empirical study is carried out on how income inequality affects growth through incorporating panel data information into a quarterly macro-econometric model of China. Provincial urban and rural household data are used to construct income inequality measures, which are then used to augment household consumption equations in the model. Model simulations test the inequality effect on GDP growth and its components. Results show that income inequality forms robust explanatory variables of consumption and that the way inequality develops carries negative consequences on GDP and sectoral growth.

Suggested Citation

  • Qin, Duo & Cagas, Marie Anne & Ducanes, Geoffrey & He, Xinhua & Liu, Rui & Liu, Shiguo, 2009. "Effects of income inequality on China's economic growth," Journal of Policy Modeling, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 69-86.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jpolmo:v:31:y:2009:i:1:p:69-86
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    8. Yu, Kang & Xin, Xian & Guo, Ping & Liu, Xiaoyun, 2011. "Foreign direct investment and China's regional income inequality," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 1348-1353, May.
    9. Silver, Steven D. & Verbrugge, Randal, 2010. "Home production and endogenous economic growth," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 75(2), pages 297-312, August.
    10. Zhang, Shuguang & Cheng, Lian, 2010. "The Achilles' heels of growth: factor price distortion and consequential adverse wealth transfers in China," MPRA Paper 34710, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Azfar Hilmi Baharudin & Yap Su Fei, 2017. "A Contemporary Re-Examination Of Malaysia’S Economic Growth: The Issues Of Equity, Efficiency And Liberalization," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 62(02), pages 509-530, June.
    12. Cheong, Tsun Se & Wu, Yanrui, 2013. "Regional disparity, transitional dynamics and convergence in China," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 29(C), pages 1-14.
    13. Duc Khuong Nguyen & Benoît Sévi & Bo Sjö & Gazi Salah Uddin, 2017. "The role of trade openness and investment in examining the energy-growth-pollution nexus: empirical evidence for China and India," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(40), pages 4083-4098, August.
    14. Marina Malkina, 2014. "Study of the relationship between the development level and degree of income inequality in the Russian regions," Economy of region, Centre for Economic Security, Institute of Economics of Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, vol. 1(2), pages 238-248.
    15. Mario Holzner, 2013. "Inequality and the Crisis: A Causal Inference Analysis," wiiw Balkan Observatory Working Papers 110, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.
    16. Yingru Li, 2012. "The spatial variation of China's regional inequality in human development," Regional Science Policy & Practice, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 4(3), pages 263-278, August.
    17. Piotr Pietraszewski, 2016. "Microeconomic fundamentals of the aggregate production function with constant returns to scale," Ekonomia journal, Faculty of Economic Sciences, University of Warsaw, vol. 45.
    18. Bruno Jetin & Ozan Ekin-Kurt & Anna Su, 2012. "Unbalanced distribution of income and Unbalanced Chinese Growth: Single Equation Estimations Based on Bhaduri/Marglin Model," Post-Print halshs-03244032, HAL.
    19. Sebastian Leitner, 2013. "Analysis of Short and Medium Term Crisis Effects on Welfare and Poverty in SEE: Stress Testing Bulgarian and Romanian Households," wiiw Balkan Observatory Working Papers 111, The Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, wiiw.
    20. Michel De Vroey, 2010. "Getting rid of Keynes ? A survey of the history of macroeconomics from Keynes to Lucas and beyond," Working Paper Research 187, National Bank of Belgium.
    21. Hajamini, Mehdi, 2020. "Analyzing the Causal Relationships between Economic Growth, Income Inequality, and Transmission Channels: New Empirical Evidences from Iran," Journal of Money and Economy, Monetary and Banking Research Institute, Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran, vol. 15(3), pages 313-342, July.

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