IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/jed/journl/v34y2009i2p153-168.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Role Of Financial Development On Income Inequality In Malaysia

Author

Listed:
  • Siong Hook Law

    (Department of Economics, Universiti Putra Malaysia)

  • Hui Boon Tan

    (University of Nottingham, Malaysia Campus)

Abstract

This study examines the role of financial development in influencing income inequality in Malaysia over the period of 1980-2000. The empirical results based on ARDL bounds test indicate that financial market development is, at best, very weak and statistically insignificant in reducing income inequality in Malaysia. The evidence is valid for a variety of financial indicators, including the banking sector, the stock market and financial aggregate variables. The evidence also highlights that besides various government¡¯s development programs, efforts should also concentrate on improving institutional quality, economic development and maintaining low inflation in its attempt to combat income inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Siong Hook Law & Hui Boon Tan, 2009. "The Role Of Financial Development On Income Inequality In Malaysia," Journal of Economic Development, Chung-Ang Unviersity, Department of Economics, vol. 34(2), pages 153-168, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:jed:journl:v:34:y:2009:i:2:p:153-168
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.jed.or.kr/full-text/34-2/8.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alberto Chong & Mark Gradstein, 2007. "Inequality and Institutions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 89(3), pages 454-465, August.
    2. Meyer Bittencourt, Manoel F., 2006. "Financial Development and Inequality: Brazil 1985-99," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Berlin 2006 5, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
    3. Levine, Ross & Zervos, Sara, 1998. "Stock Markets, Banks, and Economic Growth," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(3), pages 537-558, June.
    4. Karla Hoff & Joseph E. Stiglitz, 2004. "After the Big Bang? Obstacles to the Emergence of the Rule of Law in Post-Communist Societies," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 94(3), pages 753-763, June.
    5. Sonin, Konstantin, 2003. "Why the rich may favor poor protection of property rights," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 715-731, December.
    6. Stephen Knack & Philip Keefer, 1995. "Institutions And Economic Performance: Cross‐Country Tests Using Alternative Institutional Measures," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(3), pages 207-227, November.
    7. Asli Demeirgüç-Kunt & Ross Levine (ed.), 0. "Finance and Growth," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 17119.
    8. Ross Levine & Norman Loayza & Thorsten Beck, 2002. "Financial Intermediation and Growth: Causality and Causes," Central Banking, Analysis, and Economic Policies Book Series, in: Leonardo Hernández & Klaus Schmidt-Hebbel & Norman Loayza (Series Editor) & Klaus Schmidt-Hebbel (Se (ed.),Banking, Financial Integration, and International Crises, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 2, pages 031-084, Central Bank of Chile.
    9. Banerjee, Abhijit V & Newman, Andrew F, 1993. "Occupational Choice and the Process of Development," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 101(2), pages 274-298, April.
    10. Hendry, David F. & Ericsson, Neil R., 1991. "Modeling the demand for narrow money in the United Kingdom and the United States," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(4), pages 833-881, May.
    11. Mishkin, Frederic S., 2009. "Globalization and financial development," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(2), pages 164-169, July.
    12. M. Hashem Pesaran & Yongcheol Shin & Richard J. Smith, 2001. "Bounds testing approaches to the analysis of level relationships," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 16(3), pages 289-326.
    13. Oded Galor & Joseph Zeira, 1993. "Income Distribution and Macroeconomics," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 60(1), pages 35-52.
    14. Alberto Chong & Mark Gradstein, 2007. "Inequality and Institutions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 89(3), pages 454-465, August.
    15. Beck, Thorsten & Levine, Ross & Loayza, Norman, 2000. "Finance and the sources of growth," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(1-2), pages 261-300.
    16. Zhicheng Liang, 2006. "Financial Development and Income Inequality in Rural China 1991-2000," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2006-96, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Li, Hongyi & Squire, Lyn & Zou, Heng-fu, 1998. "Explaining International and Intertemporal Variations in Income Inequality," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 108(446), pages 26-43, January.
    18. Rajan, Raghuram G. & Zingales, Luigi, 2003. "The great reversals: the politics of financial development in the twentieth century," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 69(1), pages 5-50, July.
    19. George R. G. Clarke & Lixin Colin Xu & Heng‐fu Zou, 2006. "Finance and Income Inequality: What Do the Data Tell Us?," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 72(3), pages 578-596, January.
    20. Beck, Thorsten & Demirguc-Kunt, Asli & Levine, Ross, 2004. "Finance, inequality, and poverty: cross-country evidence," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3338, The World Bank.
    21. Uchimura, Hiroko, 2005. "Influence of Social Institutions on Inequality in China," IDE Discussion Papers 26, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).
    22. Claessens, Stijn & Perotti, Enrico, 2007. "Finance and inequality: Channels and evidence," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(4), pages 748-773, December.
    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. Frederic S. Mishkin, 2007. "Is Financial Globalization Beneficial?," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 39(2-3), pages 259-294, March.
    2. Alberto Chong & Mark Gradstein, 2007. "Inequality and Institutions," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 89(3), pages 454-465, August.
    3. Muhammad Shahbaz & Nanthakumar Loganathan & Aviral Tiwari & Reza Sherafatian-Jahromi, 2015. "Financial Development and Income Inequality: Is There Any Financial Kuznets Curve in Iran?," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 124(2), pages 357-382, November.
    4. Seven, Unal & Coskun, Yener, 2016. "Does financial development reduce income inequality and poverty? Evidence from emerging countries," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 34-63.
    5. Altunbaş, Yener & Thornton, John, 2020. "Finance and income inequality revisited," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    6. Nasreen, Samia & Mahalik, Mantu Kumar & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Abbas, Qaisar, 2020. "How do financial globalization, institutions and economic growth impact financial sector development in European countries?," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 54(C).
    7. Kholeka Mdingi & Sin-Yu Ho, 2023. "Income inequality and economic growth: An empirical investigation in South Africa," Cogent Economics & Finance, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 11(2), pages 2230027-223, June.
    8. Vollrath, Dietrich, 2008. "Agrarian Structure and Endogenous Financial System Development," MPRA Paper 12430, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Vollrath, Dietrich, 2008. "Agrarian Structure and Endogenous Financial System Development," MPRA Paper 11538, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    10. George R. G. Clarke & Lixin Colin Xu & Heng‐fu Zou, 2006. "Finance and Income Inequality: What Do the Data Tell Us?," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 72(3), pages 578-596, January.
    11. Mohamed Salah Mansour & Miriam Wendel, 2015. "Finance and Inequality – Evidence from East Asia," Eurasian Journal of Economics and Finance, Eurasian Publications, vol. 3(3), pages 1-16.
    12. Kim, Dong-Hyeon & Lin, Shu-Chin, 2023. "Income inequality, inflation and financial development," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 468-487.
    13. Alberto Chong & Mark Gradstein, 2004. "La desigualdad y las instituciones," Research Department Publications 4362, Inter-American Development Bank, Research Department.
    14. Brei, Michael & Ferri, Giovanni & Gambacorta, Leonardo, 2023. "Financial structure and income inequality," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    15. Robert Cull & Kinnon Scott, 2010. "Measuring Household Usage of Financial Services: Does it Matter How or Whom You Ask?," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 24(2), pages 199-233, April.
    16. Hasan, Iftekhar & Wachtel, Paul & Zhou, Mingming, 2009. "Institutional development, financial deepening and economic growth: Evidence from China," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 157-170, January.
    17. Muhammad Shahbaz & Naveed Aamir, 2007. "Rural-Urban Income Inequality under Financial Development and Trade Openness in Pakistan: The Econometric Evidence," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 46(4), pages 657-672.
    18. Philippe Aghion & Peter Howitt & David Mayer-Foulkes, 2005. "The Effect of Financial Development on Convergence: Theory and Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 120(1), pages 173-222.
    19. James B. Ang, 2010. "Finance and Inequality: The Case of India," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 76(3), pages 738-761, January.
    20. Roya Taherifar & Mark J. Holmes & Gazi M. Hassan, 2023. "Does economic openness matter in the impact of financial development on income inequality?," Working Papers in Economics 23/04, University of Waikato.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Banking Sector; Capital Market; Financial Development; Income Inequality; ARDL Bounds Test;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

    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:jed:journl:v:34:y:2009:i:2:p:153-168. 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: Sung Y. Park (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/eccaukr.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.