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Understanding Income Inequality in China: A Multi-Angle Perspective

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  • Shujie Yao
  • Liwei Zhu

Abstract

Economic reforms have brought about spectacular growth and vast improvements of people’s living standards in China since 1978. In the meantime, unbalanced regional growth and income inequality have become two important concerns of future development. Most available studies on income distribution have either focused on the rural population or on the urban citizens. This paper stresses the importance of adopting a multi-angle approach to fully understand income inequality in China. We first use some top-down information to form a general picture of inequality for the whole country, and then use some bottom-up household survey data to explain in detail the development of inequality over time regarding rural/urban inequality, rural inequality, urban inequality and inter-regional inequality, the relative importance of different income sources to overall inequality. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1998

Suggested Citation

  • Shujie Yao & Liwei Zhu, 1998. "Understanding Income Inequality in China: A Multi-Angle Perspective," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 31(2), pages 133-150, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:ecopln:v:31:y:1998:i:2:p:133-150
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1003491509829
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dennis Tao Yang & Hao Zhou, 1999. "Rural-urban disparity and sectoral labour allocation in China," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(3), pages 105-133.
    2. Knight, John & Song, Lina, 1993. "The Spatial Contribution to Income Inequality in Rural China," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 17(2), pages 195-213, June.
    3. Deininger, Klaus & Squire, Lyn, 1996. "A New Data Set Measuring Income Inequality," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 10(3), pages 565-591, September.
    4. Theodore Groves & Yongmiao Hong & John McMillan & Barry Naughton, 1994. "Autonomy and Incentives in Chinese State Enterprises," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 109(1), pages 183-209.
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    Cited by:

    1. Wei, Shang-Jin & Wu, Yi, 2001. "Globalization and Inequality: Evidence from within China," CEPR Discussion Papers 3088, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    2. Branko Milanovic, 2012. "Global inequality recalculated and updated: the effect of new PPP estimates on global inequality and 2005 estimates," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 10(1), pages 1-18, March.
    3. Jorge Martinez-Vazquez & Mark Rider, 2005. "Fiscal Decentralization and Economic Growth: A Comparative Study of China and India (2005)," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper0519, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.
    4. Ajit S. Bhalla & Shujie Yao & Zongyi Zhang, 2003. "Causes of inequalities in China, 1952 to 1999," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(8), pages 939-955.
    5. Roy Bahl & Jorge Martinez-Vazquez, 2003. "Fiscal Federalism and Economic Reform in China," International Center for Public Policy Working Paper Series, at AYSPS, GSU paper0313, International Center for Public Policy, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University.

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