Trends In Income Inequality Research Articles

Adequacy of photovoltaic power on provincial and regional levels of income inequality in China

China has made significant strides in combating energy poverty by allocating funds to provide households with solar photovoltaic (SPV) systems. SPV technology improves living standards and reduces income inequality. Accordingly, this study initiates a new discussion by evaluating the role of SPV policy in reducing income inequality in China by narrowing the rural income gap. Firstly, we find income inequality using rural and urban income ratios. Secondly, we assess income inequality and solar photovoltaic trends over the years at the provincial and regional levels (using spatial graphs). Similarly, the study carried out a mediation analysis of the effects of SPV and economic growth on income inequality. This study examines the trend of photovoltaic prices in China over time and evaluates their impact on SPV power generation. China has witnessed a significant increase in SPV power generation, particularly after 2014, which coincides with a reduction in income inequality. However, income inequality still exists significantly as Qinghai, Tibet, Yunnan, Gansu, Guizhou, and Shaanxi have higher income inequality ranges between 2.78 and 3.38. The results further conclude that SPV policy's combined effects positively increase household income and reduce income inequality.

Wealth inequality: the Indian case

ABSTRACT Three decades have passed since India implemented market-oriented economic reforms. While levels of and trends in consumption and income inequality have been studied extensively, wealth inequality has not received the same level of attention. In this paper, we use nationally representative household surveys to show that the period of economic reforms has witnessed a sharp rise in interpersonal wealth inequality. A decomposition of this rising wealth inequality shows that wealth is increasingly concentrated in urban areas, among a few privileged social groups, and in the top decile of the Indian population.

Trends and Causes of Regional Income Inequality in China

Although China has been successful in reducing national income inequality over the past decade, regional income inequality shows a fluctuating trend. The pre-tax income shares of the top 10% and 1% have grown since 1978 and reached about 40% and 15% of the total income share in 2015. Meanwhile, the pre-tax income shares of the bottom 50% have been falling, having dropped from one-quarter of the total income share to less than that of the top 1% in 2015. With this background, this study investigated the trends of income inequality from 2000 to 2020 in west, central, northeast, and east regions in China and analysed their influence factors. Income data from 271 prefecture-level cities in mainland China between 2010 and 2019 were used to calculate the Theil index in each province and region. The analysis was segregated based on urban and rural areas in four regions: east, northeast, central, and west. The Theil index indicated that the income inequality of different regions in China showed a declining trend in rural areas, and a declining and then increasing trend in urban areas. Furthermore, local economic development has a positive impact on income inequality, whereas the urbanization rate and fiscal spending rate have negative impacts on income inequality.

Trade Openness, Financial Openness and Income Inequality: Empirical Evidence for MIST Countries/ Ticari Açıklık, Finansal Açıklık ve Gelir Eşitsizliği İlişkisi: MIST Ülkeleri için Ampirik Bulgular

Since the 1980s, income inequality has increased significantly in developed and developing countries. The literature has also seen studies that attempt to explain this rising trend in income inequality. Some studies explaining the increase in income inequality in various ways have focused on economic globalization. Questions on how the steps taken towards liberalization in international trade and finance and increasing market integration affect income inequality have been at the center of the discussions in these studies. Uncertainty about the direction and extent of the link between globalization and inequality persists primarily because of the conflicting empirical findings in the literature. This study aims to contribute to the literature by conducting an empirical analysis of MIST countries with data covering 1987-2019. The study's findings, which used panel data analysis to assess the data, showed that while trade and financial openness reduce income inequality for MIST countries over the analyzed period, foreign direct investments do the opposite. The results also showed that the effect of financial openness on income inequality is greater than the effect of trade openness. It is also discovered that the rate of per capita income increase has no statistically significant impact on income inequality.

Trends and Tendencies of Uni-dimensional Poverty is not the Flip Side of Poverty

This study focused on trends and tendencies of Unidimesnional poverty in overall Pakistan, not only at the national level but also at the provincial and regional level. The FGT methodology was applied to measuring poverty by using PSLM data from 2010–11 and 2019–20. The empirical results show that, while absolute poverty has gone down over the past ten years, relative poverty has gone up in a number of places. Compared to urban areas, rural areas are more likely to see increasing rates of relative poverty. Income disparity is on the rise in the cities of Punjab and KPK compared to the countryside, and the reverse is true in Sindh and Baluchistan. In Punjab and KPK, the trend and tendencies of income inequality are greater in cities than in rural areas, whereas the opposite is true in Sindh and Baluchistan. Further, this study finds out that poverty in Pakistan is not only a monetary phenomenon but also an intellectual one. Therefore, if we focus only on the monetary side of poverty to eradicate it, it will not be possible to eradicate it by 2030, intellectual poverty is actually the flip side of poverty.

Trends in Income Inequality and Its Impact on Economic Growth

In recent years, climate change and the pandemic have brought the issue of the link between inequality and economic growth to the fore. In my essay, I examine this relationship, focusing on whether inequality has a positive or negative effect on economic growth. I approach the issue through the lens of income inequality without seeking to explore all aspects of inequality. Starting from the relevant conceptual framework, I present the link between global inequality and long-term growth. Since inequalities affect both developed and developing countries, I compare them and show why the latter cannot repeat the economic progress achieved by earlier industrialisers. Finally, I conclude that the clear objective should be to reduce excessive inequalities.

Global embeddedness and local responses: Trends in income inequality in Hungary following the 2008 economic crisis

Global embeddedness and local responses: Trends in income inequality in Hungary following the 2008 economic crisis

Introduction to the special issue on mobility, climate change, and economic inequality

Introduction to the special issue on mobility, climate change, and economic inequality

Porezi i dohodovna nejednakost u Evropskoj uniji - pristup kvantilne regresije

This paper tests the role of taxes in reducing income inequality in the European Union members. Using Eurostat data on Gini coefficients in a 14-year period, a slight growing trend of income inequality is found. The main findings indicate that taxes have a negative and statistically significant impact on income inequality, though this impact is relatively weak. A quantile regression estimates suggest that the redistributive power of taxes is highest in the most unequal societies and vice versa. It implies that taxes reduce income inequality mostly in the early stages of government efforts toward reducing income inequality. In the paper it is argued that combating cross-border tax avoidance is of the first-order importance for reducing income inequality instead of increasing statutory tax rates or progressivity of taxes. Research results are robust to changes of sampling period and lagging independent variables.

Efekat ekonomskog rasta na dohodnu nejednakost u Podsaharskoj Africi

In this paper, the way in which economic growth influences income distribution is examined with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Despite considerable growth in a number of the SSA countries, the region has been slow in reversing the rising trend of income inequality. A large proportion of countries in the region globally rank among economies with extreme income inequality. The study covers a period from 1995 to 2015, due to the limited data on the measure of income inequality, the Gini index, for the largest number of the countries of the region. The Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) system was employed in examining this paradox. The findings of this research study do not only suggest the presence of an inverted-U relationship between economic growth and income inequality, but the supposition of the S-shaped curve hypothesis in the interplay of growth and inequality was also tested and confirmed. It can be concluded that in no way do spurts in economic growth bring about diminution in income disproportion in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Trends in Income Inequality and Economic Growth: a Bibliometric Analysis

Despite the empirical and theoretical work that has been done, the impact of economic growth on income inequality remains a matter of debate, and conclusions regarding these relationships are still far from consensus. The review of the literature revealed that different model specifications, different datasets, and different estimation methods can influence the relationship between economic growth and income inequality. Moreover, when it comes to developing countries, the debate becomes even more intense, even if most authors argue that there is a negative relationship between them. This study aims to review the academic literature to identify key concepts and themes in the field of income inequality and its relationship to economic growth. Also, the purpose of the article is to identify gaps in this topic for future research. A bibliometric analysis of the literature was carried out using the R-package Biblioshiny tool. The sample includes 1 431 publications from the Scopus database. Articles are analyzed against annual scientific production, most important sources, most relevant organizations, a network of coincidences, and thematic mapping and evolution to understand trends in the body of knowledge about income inequality. As a result of the analysis, the main factors influencing economic growth, and subsequently the growth of income differentiation, were identified. A gap in the reviewed studies is the lack of knowledge of the factors determining the quality of economic growth, which subsequently affect income inequality. This research gap will be the direction of future research.

Trends in Polarisation in Pakistan

This study analyses the trends in polarisation in Pakistan, in its rural and urban segments and its provinces, at the micro level during the period 1992-93 to 2001-02. Estimations are made by using the Bossert-Schworm measure (2006). The study finds fluctuating trends. In general, polarisation declined in all regions of Pakistan during 1996-97 and 2001-02, while 1998-99 is the period of maximum polarisation. Incorporating the household size reduces the extent of polarisation, implying that ignoring the household size overestimates polarisation. The comparison of trends in polarisation and income inequality shows that generally the trends in inequality and polarisation are similar.

INCOME INEQUALITY IN EMERGING MARKET ECONOMIES: A MULTI-COUNTRY STUDY OF BRAZIL, INDIA AND SOUTH AFRICA

Inequality refers to the extent to which income is evenly distributed across a population (IMF, 2022). The World Inequality Report (WIR, 2022) reveals the latest trends in global income inequality. It shows that the richest 10% of the global population currently earns 52% of global income, while the poorest half of the population takes 8.5% of it. In emerging market economies, indications are that income inequality is rising; sometimes accompanied by accelerating economic growth. Reports reveal that Brazil’s six richest individuals command the same wealth associated with the poorest 50% of the population, or about 100 million people. The World Inequality Report (2021) reveals India as a poor and unequal country, with the bottom half of the population earning only 13% of the nation’s income, while the top 10% controls 57% by 2021. In South Africa, the IMF (2020) acknowledges that the nation’s inequality has remained at high levels, perhaps the highest in the world. This is characterized by a highly skewed income distribution pattern, with the top 20% of the population controlling 68% of national income. These developments hold grave implications for emerging markets, particularly their ability to meet the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The main objective of this paper is to explore income inequality in emerging market economies, with a multi-country study of Brazil, India and South Africa. The methodological approach to the study involves both qualitative and quantitative analytical techniques. It relies on secondary data in publications from various sources, complemented by interviews of stakeholders in the study areas. Findings reveal the income inequality is undermining economic growth and development in emerging markets, fueling conflicts and triggering migration in some countries. The paper presents recommendations, underpinned by progressive taxation, social safety nets, gender equality, development of social services, and leveraging economic and financial incentives for labour-intensive industries.

Trends in Income Inequality: Evidence from Developing and Developed Countries

We use a novel approach to answer questions like: is there a secular trend and shift in inequality across developing and/or developed countries? Do the developing countries converge the inequality level of developed countries? Unlike some recent studies that rely on casual observation of the time series, we conduct recent econometric techniques that allow us to check if there are statistically significant trends and whether these trends are deterministic or stochastic. We also test the inequality gap between developed countries and different developing country groups using convergence test. Using data of 34 countries over the 1960–2020 period, we find that inequality has been either increasing or stable in developed countries; in developing countries, both improvements and deterioration in inequality are observable. We show also that few developing countries reduce the inequality gap with developed countries. These heterogeneous trends suggest that the inequality in the last half-century is driven by national rather than global contexts. Our analysis of the Official Development Assistance and inequality nexus supports this inference.

Income and Wealth Inequality in Asia and the Pacific: Trends, Causes, and Policy Remedies

The Asia–Pacific region's rapid growth and poverty reduction in recent decades have been accompanied by rising income and wealth inequality. Technological progress, globalization, deregulation and market‐oriented reform, and financialization have generated many new opportunities, but rewarded capital more than labor, benefited skilled workers more than the unskilled, widened spatial inequality, and produced a growing number of the superrich. For some countries, population aging has also contributed to rising inequality. The present paper provides an update on recent trends of income and wealth inequality in the Asia–Pacific region, examines causes behind rising inequality, and discusses policy actions needed to tackle inequality. It also assesses how the COVID‐19 has likely worsened inequality in the region.

The fundamental role of tax systems in the relationship between workfare and inequality in the lower half of the income distribution

In recent decades, many affluent democracies moved from traditional welfare states to workfare systems. Meanwhile, income inequality developed differently across countries, even when they made apparently similar shifts from welfare to workfare. It is a matter of debate why welfare state change had such heterogeneous consequences across countries. This article proposes that different incentives to take up low-wage work set by tax reforms in the wake of welfare-to-workfare transitions alter consequences on inequality in the lower half of the income distribution. To support this argument, we contrast the trends between the U.S. and Germany. The German and U.S. tax systems were used in very different ways to incentivize low-wage work. The U.S. provided strong incentives to take up low-wage, high-hour work through refundable tax credits. They act as in-work subsidies and represent an enormous public income support program. In contrast, in Germany, payroll taxes were reduced for marginal employment. These jobs were intended to serve as a stepping stone to full employment. Germany aimed to reduce barriers to labor market entry, but did not increase subsidies for those working higher hours in low-wage jobs. We hypothesize that the German path led to increased income inequality within the lower half of the income distribution, whereas the large U.S. tax-based subsidies in the U.S. significantly counteracted it. Decompositions of unconditional quantile regressions based on the SOEP and the CPS-ASEC for 1992 and 2014 strongly support these assumptions. Households with no labor market integration lost ground with the workfare reforms in both countries, increasing inequality in the lower half. However, U.S. households that conformed to the new workfare system by taking low-wage jobs received additional after-tax income through tax cuts and credits. This additional income of the beneficiary households increased the percentile values between the 10th and 30th percentiles by about 6 per cent, thus reducing income inequality in the lower half. Germany, on the contrary, lacked such compensatory subsidies for compliant households. Thus, increased take-up of low-wage work was associated with an increase in income inequality in the lower half. We conclude that tax systems are important in understanding why the shift towards workfare was associated with heterogeneous trends in income inequality across countries.

Distribusi Pendapatan dan Kemiskinan di Indonesia: Kasus Kebijakan Sentralisasi, Desentralisasi, dan Pandemi Covid-19

This article reviews the problem of income distribution and poverty in Indonesia based on the case of policies in the era of centralization, decentralization, and the COVID-19 pandemic. This article was compiled using the literature study method. The Centralization period began with good results until the late 1980s and early 1990s there were problems with income distribution and poverty, and then exacerbated by the 1997-1998 economic crisis. The decentralization period began with an upward trend in income inequality after 1998, but empirically, fiscal decentralization has proven to be better at reducing regional income inequality. The existence of the Covid-19 Pandemic has a very large impact on economic growth, reduced community economic activity makes economic growth decline, The decline in economic growth causes an increase in the poverty rate. The Covid-19 pandemic caused high inequality in urban areas, but not too high at the rural level, this indicates that inequality in urban areas is much more serious than rural areas. The policy strategy needed to address the problem of income distribution and poverty should pay attention to aspects of institutional intervention policies, sustainable fiscal policies, special policies for the very poor, and equitable development policies. The Presidential Instruction on Disadvantaged Villages (IDT), Economic Equity Policy (KPE), and National Economic Recovery (PEN) are 3 important policies that have been carried out by the government in overcoming the problem of income distribution and poverty in Indonesia.

The correlates of declining income inequality among emerging and developing economies during the 2000s

• Income inequality in developing countries tended to decline during the 2000s. • This did not just apply to Latin America: inequality fell in many other countries. • The tendency was stronger in countries with higher initial levels of inequality. • It was also stronger in countries subject to larger increases in commodity prices. • We also find a role for more redistributive fiscal policy, but only in Latin America. Since the early 2000s, trends in income inequality in emerging and developing economies have undergone a noticeable shift. While inequality tended to increase during the 1980s and 1990s, it has tended to fall since the early 2000s. In this paper we analyse the correlates of declining income inequality among emerging and developing economies during the 2000s. We estimate country-specific trends in market and disposable income inequality for a large sample of over 100 countries, and then use econometric analysis to examine the correlates of those trends. We find that the tendency toward declining inequality in the 2000s was stronger in countries with higher initial levels of inequality and larger increases in relative agricultural productivity, country-specific primary commodity prices, and remittance inflows. We also find a role for increases in educational attainments, tax revenues and government social spending, and trade liberalisation, but only in Latin America. The results suggest that the challenge now facing many emerging and developing countries is how to sustain the reductions in inequality achieved since the early 2000s, given the decline in commodity prices since 2015, and the social and economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trends in the shape of the income–mortality association in Sweden between 1995 and 2017: a repeated cross-sectional population register study

ObjectiveWe investigate recent trends in income inequalities in mortality and the shape of the association in Sweden. We consider all-cause, preventable and non-preventable mortality for three age groups (30–64, 65–79...

The weight of the rich: improving surveys using tax data

Household surveys often fail to capture the top tail of income and wealth distributions, as evidenced by studies based on tax data. Yet to date there is no consensus on how to best reconcile both sources of information, given the multiple biases at play. This paper contributes a novel method, rooted in standard calibration theory, to directly confront the problem of survey non-response between survey micro-data and anonymous tax data under reasonable assumptions. Our key innovation is to endogenously determine a “merging point” between the datasets, above which we start to incorporate information from tax data into the survey, under the assumption that the rate of representativeness is constant, then decreasing with income. This is followed by a “reweighting” and a “replacing” step, which preserves the microdata structure of the original survey, assuming no re-ranking of observations. We illustrate our approach with simulations, which show that our method is robust to the existence of income misreporting, and performs better than alternative methods. We also apply it to real data from five countries, both developed and less developed, finding changes to the levels and trends in income inequality. We discuss several limits to our approach and suggest some guidelines for future research.