The consumption–wealth ratio,real estate wealth,and the Japanese stock market

The first contribution of this paper, in following the works of Lettau and Ludvigson, 2001a, Lettau and Ludvigson, 2001b, is to construct a Japanese consumption–wealth ratio data series and to examine whether it explains Japanese stock market data. We find that the consumption–wealth ratio does predict future stock returns, but the evidence is weaker than that from US data, and the source of predictability is limited to observations after the collapse of the asset bubble at the beginning of the 1990s. The consumption–wealth ratio also helps to explain cross-sectional Japanese stock returns. The second contribution of the paper is that we propose new consumption–wealth ratio that more explicitly deal with household real estate wealth utilizing Japanese aggregate-level data. Such “real estate augmented” consumption–wealth ratio perform better than the consumption–wealth ratio calculated with only financial wealth data. While the scaled factor model proposed by Lettau and Ludvigson performs relatively well with Japanese data, the book-to-market related anomaly pointed out by Chan et al. (1991) and Jagannathan et al. (1998) remains strong.     

The lay subsidies and the distribution of wealth in medieval England, 1275–1334

This article examines the evidence that between 1275 and 1334 the lay subsidies provide a yardstick with which to measure the English economy. It compares their evidence with the chronological and geographical pattern of wealth obtainable from the Statute Merchant records of debt and concludes that the main discrepancies can be explained by the progressive exclusion from the tax valuations of wool, coin, and credit. Accordingly, from c . 1300 the lay subsidies cannot be used as a guide to the distribution of wealth in England and they can offer only a limited comparison with the wealth revealed by the Tudor subsidies.     

The national wealth of Sweden, 1810–2014

This study presents a new database, the Swedish National Wealth Database, which contains annual data on private, public, and national wealth and sectoral saving rates in Sweden over the past two centuries. The paper reviews previous investigations of national wealth, compares their estimates with the ones presented here and discusses method approaches and measurement problems. The main results from data series are presented for assets and liabilities and their subcomponents, for the private and public domestic and foreign sectors. By complementing the past literature with its traditional focus on economic flow variables to understand long-run economic developments, this new database offers potentially new perspectives on a number of important issues in Sweden's economic history.     

Gentlewomanly capitalism? Spinsters,widows, and wealth holding in England and Wales,c. 1800–1860

This article examines the demographic and geographical importance of wealthy middle-class women. It argues that in certain towns and cities, notably London, such women were of sufficient importance to merit attention in their own right. Drawing upon a sample of wills, it describes the types of wealth owned by these women. By examining women's investment in government securities, it argues that women's wealth was of crucial importance to the British state. Its findings challenge conventional understandings of the relationships between gender ideology, wealth holding, and economic development.     

University education,homeownership and housing wealth

We utilise the implementation of the 1999 higher education expansion in China as a natural experiment to examine the relationship between university educational attainment, homeownership and housing wealth. Using data from the 2018 China Family Panel Studies, results from our preferred models, which correct for endogeneity, suggest that having a university qualification generates a 3.5–6.3 percentage points increase in the probability of homeownership and a 24.3–51.1 percentage points increase in total housing wealth. We also find that holding a university qualification increases the number of houses one owns and housing wealth for those whose housing wealth is above the median. We find that self-reported social status and entitlement to superannuation are channels through which higher education affects homeownership and housing wealth and that financial literacy is a channel through which higher education affects housing wealth. We find considerable heterogeneity in the impact of higher education on housing outcomes across gender, family income levels, parent education and between urban and rural areas.     

Income and wealth

Barclay, Sir P. 1995: Income and Wealth, Volume 1, Joseph Rowntree Inquiry. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation, £9 paper.

Hills, J. 1995: Income and Wealth. Volume 2, Joseph Rowntree Inquiry. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation, £9 paper; £15 if both volumes ordered together.     

Race and wealth

One of the most heated scholarly controversies in the area of racial equality and social justice in the 1980s has been the dispute over the nature, cause, and meaning of economic changes occurring within the black community. Although this debate has important public policy consequences, most of the research on which the debate is based is concerned with income. We argue that a broader interpretation of life chances should include an examination of wealth as well as income. Using the 1984 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), we examine black and white patterns of wealth inequality. Our analysis uncovers a depth of inequality beyond that which is found when income alone is considered. Furthermore, we find that both race and class are important in determining patterns of racial inequalities in wealth.     

Expected inflation,wealth effects and personal expenditure

Zusammenfassung Inflationserwartungen, Verm?gen und pers?nliche Ausgaben. — In dem Artikel wird ein Modell entwickelt, mit dem die Beziehung zwischen pers?nlichen Ausgaben und Inflationserwartungen getestet wird. Danach ist die Wirkung einer erwarteten Steigerung der Preise von dauerhaften Gütern auf die Ausgabenquote signifikant positiv, aber die einer erwarteten Preissteigerung bei Verbrauchsgütern und Dienstleistungen signifikant negativ. Schlie\lich wirken sich in übereinstimmung mit Friedmans Hypothese vom permanenten Einkommen Ver?nderungen des Realeinkommens in signifikanter Weise negativ auf die Ausgabenquote aus.

---

Résumé L’inflation anticipée, les effets de patrimoine et les dépenses personnelles. — L’auteur a développé et testé un modèle pour explorer la relation entre les dépenses personnelles et l’inflation anticipée. L’effet d’une montée anticipée du prix des biens durables sur le rapport dépense/revenu est positif et significatif pendant que l’effet d’une augmentation anticipée du prix des biens non-durables et des services sur le rapport dépense/revenu est négatif et significatif. Finalement, en conformité avec l’hypothèse du revenu permanent de Friedman, l’effet des changements du revenu réel sur le rapport dépense/revenu est négatif et significatif.

---

Resumen Inflaci?n esperada, efectos de riqueza y gasto personal. — Se desarroll? y someti? a prueba un modelo para relacionar el gasto personal con la inflaci?n esperada. El efecto de la inflaci?n esperada para los precios de bienes durables sobre la proporci?n del gasto es positivo y significante, mientras que el efecto de la inflaci?n esperada para los precios de los bienes no durables y servicios sobre la proporci?n del gasto es negativo y significante. Finalmente, de acuerdo con la hip?tesis del ingreso permanente de Friedman, el impacto de cambios en el ingreso real sobre la proporci?n del gasto es negativo y significante.

     

Consumption,financial wealth and labor income in Korea

By examining the relationship between consumption, financial wealth and labor income in Korea, this paper presents three key findings. First, we find evidence that Korean households hold a larger proportion of their wealth in human capital instead of financial wealth, compared to households in other countries. Potentially, this finding appears consistent with Koreans’ enthusiasm for human development through education despite low government funding. Another important finding is that only financial wealth fluctuations contain a large portion of temporary components. Hence, financial wealth is mainly responsible for adjustments to restore the long-run relationship between consumption, financial wealth and labor income during the examined period. Third, and perhaps most interestingly, this paper finds that before the 1997 Asian financial crisis, households in Korea had difficulty smoothing their consumption over time. This finding may be at least partly attributable to households’ limited access to bank loans and their low level of financial wealth accumulation prior to the crisis. In contrast, we find little evidence that households’ consumption behavior has changed during the recent global financial crisis.     

Decomposing inequality and poverty in post-war Rwanda: The roles of gender,education, wealth and location

This paper provides an overview of poverty and inequality in post-war Rwanda. Rwanda is one of the poorest countries in the world, and has recently become one of the most unequal. High levels of poverty and inequality have important implications not only in terms of evaluations of social welfare, but also for management of social tensions and the propensity for violent conflict in the future. This paper uses the first two available and nationally representative rounds of household surveys –EICV1 2000 and EICV2 2005 – to decompose and identify the major ‘sources' of poverty and inequality in the country. I find stark differences in vulnerability to poverty by region, gender and widow status of the head of household. I additionally find important changes in the ‘income generating functions' of Rwandan households, and that distribution of land and financial assets are increasingly important in determining the inter-household distribution of income.     

The distribution of wealth in Finland in 1800

Abstract

In the year 1800 a capital levy was imposed by the Swedish Riksdag (Parliament), and in connection with this levy a property valuation was made which affords a unique cross-section of the distribution of property among the different districts, occupational sections, and families in Finland and Sweden.     

Resource boom and bust, 1885–1920: regional wealth evidence from probate records

Wealth micro-data from records probated by the Thunder Bay District Surrogate Court for 1885–1920 are examined. These data span the Canadian wheat boom era and find a break in wealth accumulation over the period 1900–1914. A bust follows the boom and real wealth during 1915–1920 is approximately 75% lower than 1910–1914. Regression results show the key determinants of wealth in the region to be time period variables, gender, literacy, occupation, marital status, and number of children. The boom had no long-term impact on individual wealth levels in the Thunder Bay District.