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Agglomeration, Inequality and Economic Growth

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  • David Castells

    () (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona)

  • Vicente Royuela

    () (Faculty of Economics, University of Barcelona)

Abstract

The impact of income inequality on economic growth is dependent on several factors, including the time horizon considered, the initial level of income and its initial distribution. Yet, as growth and inequality are also uneven across space, it is also pertinent to consider the effects of the geographical agglomeration of economic activity. Moreover, it would also seem pertinent to consider not just the levels of inequality and agglomeration, but also the changes they undergo (i.e., their within-country evolution) and how these two processes interact with each other. By applying different econometric specifications and by introducing different measures of agglomeration at country level (specifically, urbanization and urban concentration rates), this study analyzes how inequality and agglomeration (both their levels and their evolution) influence economic growth in function of the country’s level of development and its initial income distribution. Our results suggest, in line with previous studies, that while high inequality levels are a limiting factor for long-run growth, increasing inequality and increasing agglomeration have the potential to enhance growth in low-income countries where income distribution remains relatively equal, but can result in congestion diseconomies in high-income countries, especially if income distribution becomes particularly unequal.

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File URL: http://www.ub.edu/irea/working_papers/2011/201114.pdf
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Bibliographic Info

Paper provided by University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics in its series IREA Working Papers with number 201114.

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Length: 40 pages
Date of creation: Sep 2011
Date of revision: Apr 2012
Handle: RePEc:ira:wpaper:201114

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Postal: Tinent Coronel Valenzuela, Num 1-11 08034 Barcelona
Web page: http://www.ub.edu/irea/
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Related research

Keywords: Agglomeration; urbanization; urban concentration; congestion diseconomies; inequality; growth JEL classification:O1; O4; R1;

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References

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Citations

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  2. Erika Badillo & Rosina Moreno, 2012. "“What Drives the Choice of Partners in R&D Cooperation? Heterogeneity across Sectors”," AQR Working Papers 201206, University of Barcelona, Regional Quantitative Analysis Group, revised Jul 2012.
  3. Juan Luis Jiménez & Carmen García, 2012. "“Corruption and local politics: does it pay to be a crook?”," IREA Working Papers 201212, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Jun 2012.
  4. Esther Goya & Esther Vayá & Jordi Suriñach, 2012. "“Do intra- and inter-industry spillovers matter? CDM model estimates for Spain”," AQR Working Papers 201207, University of Barcelona, Regional Quantitative Analysis Group, revised Sep 2012.
  5. Ernest Miguélez & Rorina Moreno, 2012. "“What attracts knowledge workers? The role of space, social connections, institutions, jobs and amenities”," IREA Working Papers 201204, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Feb 2012.
  6. Peter Claeys & Luis Costa, 2012. "“A Note on the Relationship Between the Cyclicality of Markups and Fiscal Policy”," IREA Working Papers 201215, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Sep 2012.
  7. Xavier Fageda & Marta Gonzalez-Aregall, 2012. "“Regulation of Port Charges in Spain: Global versus Local Competition”," IREA Working Papers 201217, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Oct 2012.
  8. Daniel Albalate, 2012. "“The Institutional, Economic and Social Determinants of Local Government Transparency”," IREA Working Papers 201210, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised May 2012.
  9. María Lorena Marí del Cristo & Marta Gómez-Puig, 2012. "“Pass-through in dollarized countries: should Ecuador abandon the U.S. Dollar?”," IREA Working Papers 201216, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Oct 2012.
  10. Jaume Belles-Sampera & Montserrat Guillén & Miguel Santolino, 2013. "“Beyond Value-at-Risk: GlueVaR Distortion Risk Measures”," IREA Working Papers 201302, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Feb 2013.
  11. Daniel Albalate & Germà Bel & R. Richard Geddes, 2012. "“The determinants of contractual choice for private involvement in infrastructure projects in the United States”," IREA Working Papers 201220, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Dec 2012.

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