IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/openec/v30y2019i5d10.1007_s11079-019-09546-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Market Access, Labor Mobility, and the Wage Skill Premium: New Evidence from Chinese Cities

Author

Listed:
  • Hongbing Li

    (Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications)

  • Hongbo Cai

    (Beijing Normal University)

  • Suparna Chakraborty

    (University of San Francisco)

Abstract

Labor market reforms in developing economies have causes economic regions to open up, providing greater market access to businesses and leading to urban migration. This paper studies what happens to the wage skill premium in this process. Who gains – skilled or unskilled workers? Using data collected from a survey of 331 Chinese cities to construct a new market access index, this paper empirically analyzes the impact of increased market access on the wage skill premium. Using the theoretical framework of new economic geography and the tools of spatial externality, combined with quantile regression techniques, we find that there exists an inverted U-shaped relationship between market access and the wage skill premium. An increase in market access initially attracts high-skilled labor with promises of increased returns that increases the wage skill premium until a threshold is reached, beyond which it starts to decline. The conduit of this relationship is the impact that market access has on returns to education. The observed pattern is robust to alternative tests.

Suggested Citation

  • Hongbing Li & Hongbo Cai & Suparna Chakraborty, 2019. "Market Access, Labor Mobility, and the Wage Skill Premium: New Evidence from Chinese Cities," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 30(5), pages 947-973, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:openec:v:30:y:2019:i:5:d:10.1007_s11079-019-09546-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s11079-019-09546-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s11079-019-09546-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s11079-019-09546-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dani Rodrik & Arvind Subramanian & Francesco Trebbi, 2004. "Institutions Rule: The Primacy of Institutions Over Geography and Integration in Economic Development," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 9(2), pages 131-165, June.
    2. Feenstra, Robert C & Hanson, Gordon H, 1996. "Globalization, Outsourcing, and Wage Inequality," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 86(2), pages 240-245, May.
    3. Laura Hering & Sandra Poncet, 2010. "Market Access and Individual Wages: Evidence from China," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 92(1), pages 145-159, February.
    4. Bin Xu & Wei Li, 2008. "Trade, technology, and China's rising skill demand1," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 16(1), pages 59-84, January.
    5. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Introduction to "Schooling, Experience, and Earnings"," NBER Chapters, in: Schooling, Experience, and Earnings, pages 1-4, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Campos, Nauro F. & Dabusinskas, Aurelijus, 2009. "So many rocket scientists, so few marketing clerks: Estimating the effects of economic reform on occupational mobility in Estonia," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 25(2), pages 261-275, June.
    7. Neil Foster-McGregor & Johannes Poeschl & Robert Stehrer, 2016. "Offshoring and the Elasticity of Labour Demand," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 27(3), pages 515-540, July.
    8. David H. Romer & Jeffrey A. Frankel, 1999. "Does Trade Cause Growth?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 89(3), pages 379-399, June.
    9. Redding, Stephen & Venables, Anthony J., 2004. "Economic geography and international inequality," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(1), pages 53-82, January.
    10. Bernard Fingleton & Enrique López‐Bazo, 2006. "Empirical growth models with spatial effects," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(2), pages 177-198, June.
    11. Krugman, Paul, 1991. "Increasing Returns and Economic Geography," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(3), pages 483-499, June.
    12. Fariha Kamal & Mary E. Lovely & Puman Ouyang, 2017. "Does deeper integration enhance spatial advantages? Market access and wage growth in China," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Mary E Lovely (ed.), International Economic Integration and Domestic Performance, chapter 14, pages 255-270, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    13. Fernald, John & Edison, Hali & Loungani, Prakash, 1999. "Was China the first domino? Assessing links between China and other Asian economies," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 18(4), pages 515-535, August.
    14. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling, Experience, and Earnings," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number minc74-1.
    15. H. Hanson, Gordon, 2005. "Market potential, increasing returns and geographic concentration," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(1), pages 1-24, September.
    16. Head, Keith & Mayer, Thierry, 2006. "Regional wage and employment responses to market potential in the EU," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 573-594, September.
    17. Daron Acemoglu, 1998. "Why Do New Technologies Complement Skills? Directed Technical Change and Wage Inequality," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 113(4), pages 1055-1089.
    18. Kenneth R. Troske, 1999. "Evidence On The Employer Size-Wage Premium From Worker-Establishment Matched Data," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 81(1), pages 15-26, February.
    19. Ottaviano, Gianmarco I.P. & Pinelli, Dino, 2006. "Market potential and productivity: Evidence from Finnish regions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 636-657, September.
    20. Dean Jolliffe, 2007. "Earnings, Schooling, and Economic Reform: Econometric Evidence From Hungary (1986--2004)," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 21(3), pages 509-526, July.
    21. Philip D Wooldridge, 2006. "The changing composition of official reserves," BIS Quarterly Review, Bank for International Settlements, September.
    22. Combes, Pierre-Philippe, 2000. "Economic Structure and Local Growth: France, 1984-1993," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(3), pages 329-355, May.
    23. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Duranton, Gilles & Gobillon, Laurent, 2008. "Spatial wage disparities: Sorting matters!," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(2), pages 723-742, March.
    24. Jacob A. Mincer, 1974. "Schooling and Earnings," NBER Chapters, in: Schooling, Experience, and Earnings, pages 41-63, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    25. Alan G. Ahearne & John G. Fernald & Prakash Loungani & John W. Schindler, 2006. "Flying geese or sitting ducks: China’s impact on the trading fortunes of other Asian economies," International Finance Discussion Papers 887, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kien Ngoc Do & Huong Nguyen Giang & Le Huy & Nguyen Kim Phuong Thuy, 2023. "Does Global Value Chain Participation Improve Technical Efficiency Of Smes? Evidence From Vietnam," Post-Print hal-04528712, HAL.

    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. Burhan Can Karahasan & Firat Bilgel, 2018. "Economic Geography, Growth Dynamics and Human Capital Accumulation in Turkey: Evidence from Regional and Micro Data," Working Papers 1233, Economic Research Forum, revised 10 Oct 2018.
    2. Andrzej Cieślik & Bartłomiej Rokicki, 2016. "Individual wages and regional market potential," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 24(4), pages 661-682, October.
    3. Lovely, Mary E. & Liang, Yang & Zhang, Hongsheng, 2019. "Economic geography and inequality in China: Did improved market access widen spatial wage differences?," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 306-323.
    4. Fariha Kamal & Mary E. Lovely & Puman Ouyang, 2017. "Does deeper integration enhance spatial advantages? Market access and wage growth in China," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Mary E Lovely (ed.), International Economic Integration and Domestic Performance, chapter 14, pages 255-270, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    5. Hering, Laura & Poncet, Sandra, 2009. "The impact of economic geography on wages: Disentangling the channels of influence," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 1-14, March.
    6. Huang, Qiong & Chand, Satish, 2015. "Spatial spillovers of regional wages: Evidence from Chinese provinces," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(C), pages 97-109.
    7. repec:hal:wpspec:info:hdl:2441/c8dmi8nm4pdjkuc9g8mb6c01j is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Burhan Can Karahasan & Fırat Bilgel, 2020. "Market access and regional dispersion of human capital accumulation in Turkey," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 1073-1101, August.
    9. Keith Head & Thierry Mayer, 2011. "Gravity, market potential and economic development," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 11(2), pages 281-294, March.
    10. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Gobillon, Laurent, 2015. "The Empirics of Agglomeration Economies," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 247-348, Elsevier.
    11. Gabrielle Gambuli, 2023. "Navigating the Geography of Regional Disparities: Market Access and the Core-Periphery Divide," THEMA Working Papers 2023-05, THEMA (THéorie Economique, Modélisation et Applications), Université de Cergy-Pontoise.
    12. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/c8dmi8nm4pdjkuc9g8mb6c01j is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Keith Head & Thierry Mayer, 2011. "Gravity, market potential and development," Post-Print hal-01024209, HAL.
    14. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/c8dmi8nm4pdjkuc9g8mb6c01j is not listed on IDEAS
    15. repec:spo:wpecon:info:hdl:2441/c8dmi8nm4pdjkuc9g8mb6c01j is not listed on IDEAS
    16. Head, Keith & Mayer, Thierry, 2006. "Regional wage and employment responses to market potential in the EU," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 573-594, September.
    17. C. Duvivier & S. Li & M.-F. Renard, 2013. "Are workers close to cities paid higher nonagricultural wages in rural China?," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(30), pages 4308-4322, October.
    18. Brakman, Steven & Garretsen, Harry & Schramm, Marc, 2006. "Putting new economic geography to the test: Free-ness of trade and agglomeration in the EU regions," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 613-635, September.
    19. Laura Hering & Sandra Poncet, 2010. "Income Per Capita Inequality in China: The Role of Economic Geography and Spatial Interactions," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 655-679, May.
    20. Pierre-Philippe Combes, 2011. "The empirics of economic geography: how to draw policy implications?," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 147(3), pages 567-592, September.
    21. Stephen J. Redding, 2013. "Economic Geography: A Review of the Theoretical and Empirical Literature," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Daniel Bernhofen & Rod Falvey & David Greenaway & Udo Kreickemeier (ed.), Palgrave Handbook of International Trade, chapter 16, pages 497-531, Palgrave Macmillan.
    22. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Lafourcade, Miren, 2011. "Competition, market access and economic geography: Structural estimation and predictions for France," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(6), pages 508-524.
    23. Breinlich, Holger & Ottaviano, Gianmarco I.P. & Temple, Jonathan R.W., 2014. "Regional Growth and Regional Decline," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 4, pages 683-779, Elsevier.
    24. de Sousa, José & Poncet, Sandra, 2011. "How are wages set in Beijing?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(1), pages 9-19, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Market access; Labor mobility; Wage skill premium; New economic geography; Spatial externality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers

    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:kap:openec:v:30:y:2019:i:5:d:10.1007_s11079-019-09546-6. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    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.