The cost of living in China: Implications for inequality and poverty

Ingvild Almås and Åshild Johnsen

No 21/2012, Discussion Paper Series in Economics from Norwegian School of Economics, Department of Economics

Abstract: China’s economic development in recent decades has been tremendous, but subject to debate. This paper calculates regional prices that make incomes comparable across both time and space using the Engel-curve approach. Incomes are adjusted using these price indices, providing new estimates of inequality and poverty development. Our findings contrast with measures based on the official consumer price indices (CPIs) – in a time characterized by high economic growth,we find a larger increase in inequality and a more moderate poverty reduction than what is indicated by the CPI-adjusted measures.

Keywords: Inequality; poverty; China. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D01 E31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 35 pages
Date: 2012-11-30
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Working Paper: The Cost of Living in China: Implications for Inequality and Poverty (2013)
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