Poverty in Russia during the Transition: An Overview

It is no surprise that the breakup of the Soviet Union and theoverall demise of the planned economy has had a profound effecton the welfare of the Russian people. But the absence of reliablesurvey data has constrained our understanding of the impactthat transition has had on the distribution of income. Thisarticle draws upon several rounds of a nationally representativehousehold survey to document the sharp increases in the incidenceand severity of poverty that have occurred during the transition.We investigate the routes by which macroeconomic and structuraldevelopments have been transmitted through the labor marketand examine the performance of an increasingly overburdened,unfocused, and inadequate system of social protection. Thereis no evidence to suggest that the poor have shared in Russia'semerging economic recovery, and the emergence of a core groupof long-term poor appears to be a distinct possibility.      

SHELTER STRATEGIES FOR THE URBAN POOR IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Rapid growth in many developing-country cities is strainingthe capacity of their shelter delivery systems. Governmentshave chosen a variety of implicit and explicit policies to amelioratethese strains. However, these policies are not always consistentwith their objectives, often because of a lack of knowledgeof how housing markets actually work and how policies affectand are constrained by market behavior. This paper reviews recentresearch on housing market behavior in developing countries,including the demand for housing and the pattern of housinginvestment across countries, the financing of housing by low-incomehouseholds, and the willingness to pay for secure tenure. Commonhousing policies are then examined, including public housing,sites and services projects, and slum clearance versus upgrading.Rent controls, measures to improve the supply of finance andinfrastructure, and building codes and standards are also discussed.      

Housing Policy in Developing Countries: Conjectures and Refutations

This article discusses housing policy in developing economies.It examines recent research findings in light of earlier argumentsas to the benefits of more market-oriented approaches. It alsolooks at whether the recommendations of earlier work have beenrefuted or developed in subsequent analyses and policy measures.In particular, it reviews the empirical analysis of the effectsof policy on housing supply, the richer understanding of theeffects that land market regulations have on housing affordabilityand the functioning of urban areas, and the alleged mysteriouseffects that researchers claim effective property rights haveon housing policy and on development more generally. It alsoexamines the effects of the increased emphasis on communityparticipation, showing how it helps to more fully reconcilethe incentives faced by beneficiaries of housing policy anddonors. Finally, it examines recent literature on the welfareeffects of rent control. The article shows that some of theconjectures as to the likely benefits of more market-based policyhave been refuted, but large welfare gains for poor people canstill be realized by adapting this approach. Furthermore, thisapproach appears to be gaining ground as the consensus approachto effective housing policy.      

收入差异下的住房财富效应分化——基于283个地级市数据和CHFS家庭微观数据的实证分析

本文将收入分配结构因素纳入LC-PIH模型,试图从收入分层角度寻找我国住房市场弱财富效应的根源。基于283个地级市的面板数据和CHFS家庭微观调查数据的实证研究表明:房价对消费的影响具有门限特征,中等收入城市的住房财富效应最为明显;收入作用下的家庭住房财富效应也呈现倒U形。总体上,我国住房财富效应较弱源于收入的结构性差异,中等收入群体比重偏低可能导致房价上涨对消费的促进作用被低收入阶层和高收入阶层的挤出作用抵消。     

CHANGES IN POVERTY AND INEQUALITY IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

This paper presents new data on poverty, inequality, and growthin those developing countries of the world for which the requisitestatistics are available. Eco-nomic growth is found generallybut not always to reduce poverty. Growth, however, is foundto have very little to do with income inequality. Thus the "economiclaws" linking the rate of growth and the distribution of benefitsreceive only very tenuous empirical support here.      

收入差距、信贷约束与房价变动

本文通过构建一个异质性代理人模型,刻画了收入差距通过信贷渠道影响房价的作用机制。研究表明,收入差距的缩小提升了低收入者的收入占比,使该类人群获得了更多的外部融资进行购房,由此产生了两方面效应:(1)信贷约束放松降低了住房流动性溢价,从而对房价产生负向影响;(2)收入上涨增加了住房边际效用较高的低收入者对房价正向影响的权重,从而使住房需求上升的效应抵消了此前的负向影响,最终促进房价上涨。通过对1970-2017年44个国家的进一步分析发现,相比于高收入者收入的下降,低收入者收入占比的上升在放松信贷约束和提升房价方面具有更显著的作用。据此本文认为:一方面要通过增加住房供给来化解城市化率提升与高房价之间的内在矛盾;另一方面,在经济增速放缓的时期,缩小收入差距,推动以“人”为核心的高质量城市化,并引导信贷资源向低收入群体倾斜是当前促进国内大循环、稳定社会融资规模和房地产市场的重要手段。     

CASH FLOW OR INCOME?: The Choice of Base for Company Taxation

Cash flow and equity income (or income) are two alternativebases advocated for taxes on businesses throughout the world.Although in practice most tax systems are hybrids with elementsof both types of taxes, recent literature has stressed the meritsof the cash flow tax because it is simple in concept and itdoes not distort decisions about capital expenditures and financing.But international issues and administrative complexities—particularlytax evasion—present problems that must be sorted out beforea cash flow tax can be implemented.      

房价、城市规模与工资性收入差距——基于中国32个大中城市面板数据的实证检验

基于中国32个大中城市面板数据,拓展Matlack和Vigdor的模型,考量房价、城市规模与工资性收入差距之间的关系。结果表明：房价上涨会引起以基尼系数衡量的工资性收入差距缩小,但当城市规模处于较大水平时,房价上涨又会拉大工资性收入差距;城市规模扩大会显著缩小工资性收入差距,但当城市房价已处于较高水平时,城市规模的继续扩张则会拉大工资性收入差距。     

THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF BEING A SMALL, REMOTE, ISLAND, LANDLOCKED, OR MINISTATE ECONOMY

Any index of smallness is somewhat arbitrary, but common practicehas been to use population and income criteria. Experience suggeststhat smallness is neither a necessary nor sufficient conditionfor poor development performance. This paper considers the problemsthat small economies are most often alleged to face, includingabsence of economies of scale, vulnerability, remoteness, reducedaccess to capital markets, problems of macroeconomic policydependence, and overstatement of real income. The paper concludesthat many of the alleged problems of small economies are eithernot peculiar to small economies or can be addressed throughsuitable policy measures.      

From Prices to Incomes: Agricultural Subsidization without Protection?

Drawing from the experience of the direct income support programsrecently introduced in the European Union, Mexico, and the UnitedStates, this article highlights problems that may arise whenthe agricultural sector of a developing economy moves from price-basedsubsidization to less distorted income support. Such programsare a step in the right direction, but as currently implemented,they have many shortcomings. Moreover, developing countriesmay lack the necessary supporting arrangements needed to makesuch programs effective. The article argues that the programsshould not restrict the use of land, that the programs shouldlast for a stipulated period of time, and that the fiscal costsshould be contained by linking income support payments to worldprices.      

Housing returns,precautionary savings and consumption: Micro evidence from China

We investigate how changes in home prices affect consumption in China via a wealth channel. Examining a panel of 7955 households via fixed effects and instrumental variable methods, we find a marginal propensity to consume out of housing wealth (home-price MPC) that is concentrated on goods consumed for pleasure rather than necessity. This trend is driven by the value of second homes rather than that of primary residences, suggesting a wealth channel. We further examine whether returns on housing investment, including rental income and home appreciation, fund the wealth channel; however, we find little supporting evidence. In contrast, a reduction in health risk increases the home-price MPC, but a reduction in income risk that also relieves precautionary saving motives does not. Our results are robust to alternative data, common-factor progress, expenditure shocks and bequest motives. We contribute by examining second homes, which carry little of the dual nature of housing that primary residences do, to identify a controversial wealth channel, and by studying the relative effects of health and income risks on the wealth channel.     

Insights on Development from the Economics of Happiness

The literature on the economics of happiness in developed economiesfinds discrepancies between reported measures of well-beingand income measures. One is the so-called Easterlin paradox:that average happiness levels do not increase as countries growwealthier. This article explores how that paradox—andsurvey research on reported well-being in general—canprovide insights into the gaps between standard measures ofeconomic development and individual assessments of welfare.Analysis of research on reported well-being in Latin Americaand Russia finds notable discrepancies between respondents’assessments of their own well-being and income- or expenditure-basedmeasures. Accepting a wide margin for error in both types ofmeasures, the article posits that taking such discrepanciesinto account may improve the understanding of development outcomesby providing a broader view on well-being than do income- orexpenditure-based measures alone. It suggests particular areaswhere research on reported well-being has the most potentialto contribute. Yet the article also notes that some interpretationsof happiness research—psychologists’ set point theory,in particular—may be quite limited in their applicationto development questions and cautions against the direct translationof results of happiness surveys into policy recommendations.      

公积金制度对住房财富不平等的影响效应分析——基于CHFS数据的实证研究

住房公积金制度对住房财富积累具有较强的中介效应,其再分配机制对住房财富水平有显著影响。为此,结合中国家庭金融调查数据,引入结构方程模型和不平等回归分解法,对其影响路径进行系统性研究发现：我国住房公积金制度对高收入和高社会地位群体的住房财富积累具有稳定的正向再分配效应,对住房财富不平等的贡献较高。按照公积金的代际支付转移及分配差异的负反馈循环机制,这种不平等远未达到其最大影响。未来通过政策调整和结构优化,在公积金制度公平性和财富分配方面还蕴含着巨大的改善空间。     

Weathering the Storm: The Impact of the East Asian Crisis on Farm Households in Indonesia and Thailand

This article assesses the impact of the East Asian financialcrisis on farm households in two of the region's most affectedcountries. Indonesia and Thailand, using detailed household-levelsurvey data collected before and after the crisis began. Althoughthe nature of the shocks in the two countries were similar,the impact on farmers' income (particularly on distribution)was quite different. In Thailand, poor farmers bore the bruntof the crisis, in part because of their greater reliance onthe urban economy, than did poor farmers in Indonesia. Urban-rurallinks are much weaker in Indonesia. Farmers in both countries,particularly those specializing in export crops, benefited fromthe currency devaluation. Although there is some evidence thatthe productivity of the smallest landholders declined over theperiod in question, it is difficult to attribute this directlyto the financial crisis. At least in Thailand, a rural creditcrunch does not seem to have materialized.      

区域住房支付能力时空演化规律及其调控政策研究——以湖南省为例

基于房地产供需理论和宏观调控理论,依据湖南省14个市州房价与收入数据,考量区域住房支付能力的时空演变规律与相关宏观调控政策。结果表明：2008年和2020年湖南省房价收入比均值分别为0.129和0.155,均低于国际公认的0.3标准;湖南省住房支付能力空间分异明显,房价收入比呈现出明显的湘西北高、湘东南低的特征;根据房价收入比的演化特征,将湖南省14个市州划分为四种类型,不同类型的城市采取差异化的住房支付能力调控措施,促进房地产市场平稳健康发展。     

我国居民杠杆率现状及影响因素研究

近年来,我国居民部门杠杆率的快速上升引起社会各界关注。本文使用货币信贷和城镇储户调查数据,对我国居民部门杠杆率和偿债能力现状进行了分析,并运用各省住户贷款数据计算各省的居民杠杆率,使用面板数据模型对居民杠杆率上升的原因进行了实证分析。结果表明,房价的快速上涨和住房销售的增长都对居民部门杠杆率的上升有显著正向影响,其中房价上涨的影响程度更大。此外,金融发展水平和老年人抚养比对居民杠杆率有正向影响,少年人抚养比对居民杠杆率有负向影响。     

我国居民杠杆率现状及影响因素研究

近年来,我国居民部门杠杆率的快速上升引起社会各界关注。本文使用货币信贷和城镇储户调查数据,对我国居民部门杠杆率和偿债能力现状进行了分析,并运用各省住户贷款数据计算各省的居民杠杆率,使用面板数据模型对居民杠杆率上升的原因进行了实证分析。结果表明,房价的快速上涨和住房销售的增长都对居民部门杠杆率的上升有显著正向影响,其中房价上涨的影响程度更大。此外,金融发展水平和老年人抚养比对居民杠杆率有正向影响,少年人抚养比对居民杠杆率有负向影响。     

The Potential and Limitations of Self-Targeted Food Subsidies

Can self-selection ofsubsidized commodities be used as a mechanismto transfer income to the poor? Evidence from two self-targetingprograms, one in South Africa and one in Tunisia, shows thatalthough self-targeting can clearly improve the distributionof food subsidies to the poorest members of society, its powerto alleviate poverty and reduce income disparities is limitedby preference patterns, income inequality, and the size of theindividual subsidies. Self-targeting through quality and productdifferentiation can be a useful means to reform existing universalsubsidy schemes, but it should be considered a transitionaltool while the capacity for implementing more precise mechanisms is developed.      

Globalization and Inequality, Past and Present

The late nineteenth and late twentieth centuries shared morethan globalization and economic convergence. The trend towardglobalization in both centuries was accompanied by changes inthe distribution of income as inequality rose in rich countriesand fell in poor ones. Between one-third and one-half of therise in inequality since the 1970s in the United States andother member countries of the Organization of Economic Cooperationand Development (OECD) has been attributed to global economicforces, about the same as a century earlier. It appears thatthe inequality produced by global economic forces before WorldWar I was responsible in part for the retreat from globalizationafter the war. What does this retreat imply for the future?Will the world economy once again retreat from globalizationas the rich OECD countries come under political pressure tocushion the side effects of rising inequality?      

URBAN LABOR MARKETS AND DEVELOPMENT

Economic growth and the distribution of its benefits dependon how well the labor market mobilizes human resources in newactivities, locations, and skills. This article surveys theliterature on the functioning of labor markets in developingcountries. It shows that broad analyses of population, nationalincome, and urbanization dominated early thinking, but therewas little detail on how rural and urban labor markets functioned.The urban economies were seen as being dominated by high-wagemodern sector employment, which provided the motive for rural-urbanmigration. Although migrants swelled the ranks of the urbanunemployed, wages were said to remain high because of organizedpressures that spanned the urban economy and encouraged a chronicexcess of job seekers and urban problems. Current research, in contrast, shows that the urban economyis quite diverse and economic growth has increased the rangeof opportunities. A considerable number are in viable self-employmentand small-scale economic activity with variable economic returns.However, many are denied access to opportunity because of thelimited employment, credit, and educational infrastructure.Accelerated development and broadened access will thus strengthenthe effectiveness of the labor market in a strategy of growthwith equity.