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Inequality-Driven Growth: Unveiling Aggregation Effects in Growth Equations

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Author Info
Pedro H. Albuquerque

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Abstract

This paper presents a simple Cass-Koopmans-Ramsey AK growth model with heterogeneity that explains how policies that increase income inequality may temporarily boost a country’s income growth rate. Briefly put, a change in policy that reduces redistributive transfers will free up resources to the households with the highest productivities, resulting in an aggregate growth rate increase that will endure until new limits to differentiated accumulation are found. The unambiguous effect takes place in poor and rich countries alike, arising from productivity heterogeneity and redistribution (although it could also arise from other sources of heterogeneity). The effect is explicitly captured in the aggregate growth equation by the changes of the mean logarithmic deviation (MLD or Theil’s second measure) of the income. The model supports the empirical results found in Forbes (AER, 2000). The accelerated growth episodes observed in Brazil from 1968 to 1973 and in China recently are shown to be empirically consistent with the model. If the model predictions are correct, Chinese growth rates may eventually fall, following a pattern that, even if not presenting the same magnitude, could resemble the one observed during the Brazilian slowdown

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Paper provided by Econometric Society in its series Econometric Society 2004 Latin American Meetings with number 7.

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Date of creation: 11 Aug 2004
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Handle: RePEc:ecm:latm04:7

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Related research
Keywords: Inequality; Growth; Income Distribution; Redistribution; Heterogeneity; AK Model; Brazil; China;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
O15 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
O41 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - One, Two, and Multisector Growth Models
O50 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economywide Country Studies - - - General

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  1. Deininger, K & Squire, L, 1996. "Measuring Income Inequality : A New Data-Base," Papers 537, Harvard - Institute for International Development.
  2. Barro, Robert J, 2000. " Inequality and Growth in a Panel of Countries," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 5(1), pages 5-32, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Bourguignon, Francois, 1979. "Decomposable Income Inequality Measures," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 47(4), pages 901-20, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Lewbel, Arthur, 1992. "Aggregation with Log-Linear Models," Review of Economic Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 59(3), pages 635-42, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Fields, Gary S, 1980. "Who Benefits from Economic Development? Reply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 70(1), pages 257-62, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Xu, Lixin Colin & Zou, Heng-fu, 2000. "Explaining the changes of income distribution in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 11(2), pages 149-170, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Gibson, John & Huang, Jikun & Rozelle, Scott, 2001. "Why is income inequality so low in China compared to other countries?: The effect of household survey methods," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 71(3), pages 329-333, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. van Garderen, Kees Jan & Lee, Kevin & Pesaran, M. Hashem, 2000. "Cross-sectional aggregation of non-linear models," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 95(2), pages 285-331, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Fishlow, Albert, 1980. "Who Benefits from Economic Development? Comment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 70(1), pages 250-56, March.
  10. Kristin J. Forbes, 2000. "A Reassessment of the Relationship between Inequality and Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 90(4), pages 869-887, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Ravallion, Martin, 1998. "Does aggregation hide the harmful effects of inequality on growth?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 73-77, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Pedro H. Albuquerque, 2003. "A practical log-linear aggregation method with examples: heterogeneous income growth in the USA," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(6), pages 665-678. [Downloadable!]
  13. Xin Meng, 2004. "Economic Restructuring and Income Inequality in Urban China," Review of Income and Wealth, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 50(3), pages 357-379, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Fishlow, Albert, 1972. "Brazilian Size Distribution of Income," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(2), pages 391-402, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Jones, Larry E. & Manuelli, Rodolfo E., 1997. "The sources of growth," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 21(1), pages 75-114, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  16. Hirschman, Albert O & Rothschild, Michael, 1973. "The Changing Tolerance for Income Inequality in the Course of Economic Development; with a Mathematical Appendix," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 87(4), pages 544-66, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. Stoker, Thomas M, 1986. "Simple Tests of Distributional Effects on Macroeconomic Equations," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 94(4), pages 763-95, August. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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