Migration and regional inequality: changing characteristics of China’s economic inequality

Scholars studying economic inequality in China have maintained that regional inequality and economic divergence across provinces have steadily increased over the past 30 years. New studies have shown that this trend is a statistical aberration; calculations show that instead of quickly and sharply rising, regional inequality has actually decreased, and most recently, remained stable. Our study suggests that China’s unique migratory regime is crucial to understanding these findings. We conduct a counterfactual simulation to demonstrate how migration and remittances have mitigated income inequality across provinces in order to show that without these processes, we would have seen more of a rise in interprovincial income inequality. We conclude by arguing that inequality in China is still increasing, but it is changing and becoming less place-based. As regional inequality decreases, there are signs that point to the increasing importance of interpersonal inequality.     

Regional Inequality of Industrial Output in China, 1952 to 1990

This paper examines regional inequality of industrial output in China from 1952 to 1990. This study reveals that regional inequality was widespread when socialist China was established in 1949. It was reduced in the 1950s as a result of the efforts to develop the interior through the implementation of the First Five Year Plan (1953–57). After that, regional inequality persisted for one-and-a-half decades due mainly to the poor economic returns of the defence-oriented "Third Front" programme, decentralization, the reorientation of development policies, and the incidence of disruptive political events. Since the launch of economic reforms in 1978, interregional inequality among the eastern, central and western regions has gradually increased. However, interprovincial inequality decreased. The relative decline of the traditionally rich provinces (three municipalities and the northeastern industrial bases) has contributed to the decline of interprovincial inequality. Meanwhile, favourable state policy, local initiatives and foreign investment and trade have stimulated the growth of the coastal provinces of Jiangsu, Guangdong, Shandong, Zhejiang and Fujian, leading to more rapid coastal development and the increase of interregional inequality. The emerging new map of regional development is important to the understanding of regional inequality in post-Mao China.     

Spatial inequality in children's schooling in Gansu,Western China: reality and challenges

China has experienced considerable economic growth following the economic reforms of 1978, while simultaneously facing dramatic increases in regional inequality. China is becoming a polarized society—a phenomenon that is at the heart of a multitude of serious problems that are threatening sustainable development, as well as social cohesion within the country. Among the key reasons for this polarization are the quality of and accessibility to basic education for children. Since the establishment of the law for nine‐year compulsory education in 1986, children's education has progressed remarkably in most parts of China. It has, however, remained persistently problematic in the western provinces, particularly in remote regions, rural areas and minority communities. Even though some studies on child education in China have been carried out, very little existing research examines spatial inequality in children's schooling or accounts for the importance of sociocultural and geographic contexts. Using the example of Gansu, one of the poorest provinces in Western China, our research emphasizes the two main aspects that have led to high nonschooling rates for children: an unfavourable sociocultural milieu and inadequate educational resources.     

Regional inequality in China during its rise as a giant exporter: A value chain analysis

China's exports success has implications for regional income inequality, because most of its export products are manufactured in the coastal zone. We propose a value chain-based accounting framework to quantify the contributions of exports to regional income inequality. We employ newly developed interregional input–output tables for China, which distinguish between processing export activities and ordinary export activities. We analyze the period 2002–2012, the decade during which China became the “Factory of the World.” We find that an RMB of processing exports contributed much more to regional inequality than an RMB of ordinary exports or domestic final demand. Still, changes in regional inequality (increasing in 2002–2007 and decreasing between 2007 and 2012) are much more due to rising ordinary exports in the first subperiod and the growth of domestic final demand coupled with changes in the configuration of value chains in the second.     

A Spatial-Temporal Analysis of Health Care and Mortality Inequalities in China

Two geographers specializing in China TYalyze that country's health care inequality from 1990 to 2008, for the purpose of: (1) examining spatial-temporal variations of health care inequality at multiple scales (the regional, provincial, and county levels); (2) exploring whether economic growth and transition to a market economy have exacerbated the unevenness of health care; and (3) analyzing the impact of health care inequality on health outcomes, especially mortality. The authors apply GIS-based spatial statistical methods to detect spatial-temporal patterns of health care, and use multilevel regression to examine the linkages between health care, mortality, and regional economic inequality, and ultimately to assess the sensitivity of health care inequality to geographic scale and examine whether reforms implemented to date have resulted in more equitable access to health care. The paper also demonstrates how the concurrent transitions of decentralization, marketization, globalization, and urbanization in China have interactively contributed to health care inequality and mortality.     

China’s Information and Communication Technology in Geographic Perspective

Two economic geographers analyze the unprecedented growth of China’s information and communication technology (ICT) industry over the past decade (2000–2010)—an industry increasingly important as a new engine powering exports and providing infrastructure and services critical to sustaining economic growth. Using agglomeration and inequality indices including the Herfindahl and the Gini, the authors show that the geographic concentration of ICT activities has decreased over time, in tandem with a decline in their regional inequality; however, a new ICT development index (IDI) designed for this study reveals a significant and persistent gap in ICT development between the country’s advancing and lagging provinces. The paper also explores a range of factors contributing to “leapfrog” ICT growth in some provinces, as well as the challenges likely to be faced by the industry in the future. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: L630, L960, O180, O330. 2 figures, 4 tables, 85 references, 1 appendix.     

江苏省区域经济差异与发展战略演变初探

改革开放以来,江苏省分别实施了区域均衡发展、非均衡发展、区域共同发展和苏北大发展战略,造成了各区域间经济增长速度的差异,导致区域经济发展失衡,其主要表现为苏南、苏中与苏北三大经济区域间的差异和县域经济差异的不断扩大。在分析了现阶段江苏省沿江开发战略对区域发展差异的影响,立足区域整合的角度,提出加快沿江开发与苏北互动发展的对策与措施,以期实现江苏省区域经济的协调发展,扭转南北经济差异进一步扩大的趋势。     

The Service Sector in the Chinese Economy: A Geographic Appraisal

A U.S.-based economic geographer and observer of China's economy examines the rapid expansion of the country's largely overlooked service sector, at both the national and regional levels. A particular focus of the author's research is on identifying regional variations in the development of services within the country and exploring some of the more important contributing factors. Based on the findings, the paper also discusses structural shifts that occurred in China's regional economies, disclosing inter alia that inequality in the contribution of services to GDP did not follow the same trajectory as that of employment in services. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: L800, O180, P230. 6 figures, 4 tables, 82 references.     

基于区域经济差异视角的重庆市经济区划研究

本文在传统区域经济差异指标泰尔指数的基础上提出经济区划度的概念,对重庆市自直辖以来出台的不同经济区划方案进行评价;并运用GIS热点分析方法,探讨经济区划调整的可能性。研究结果表明：①历次政府区划方案中,“五大功能区”经济区划度远高于其余三种方案,但近年来经济区划度呈现出逐年下降趋势,并不稳定;②基于GIS热点分析得到三种初始区划方案中,方案I（“四圈+两翼”）的经济区划效果表现最佳,并显著优于“五大功能区”经济区划,且其效果呈现出逐年上升的趋势。③综合考虑政府规划决策、地形地貌、历史发展基础以及交通条件等方面因素,微调后的方案I的区划效果良好且更符合实际区划要求。研究对重庆及西部内陆地区的可持续发展具有一定科学指导意义。     

INDUSTRIAL DISPERSION IN THE SOVIET UNION: AN APPLICATION OF ENTROPY MEASURES

Industrial dispersion across the republics of the USSR between 1926 and 1974 is described through the use of entropy measures. Ostensibly, a set of location principles would guide such dispersion, and several of them stress regional equalization as an important consideration in locating industry. Therefore, trends in regional inequality (in industrialization) are investigated through the use of inequality statistics derived from entropy measures at three different spatial scales. Between 1926 and 1960, inequality among the republics decreased, but has increased between 1960 and 1974. However, inequality has decreased between the economic regions of the USSR between 1940 and 1975, and at the oblast level, there has been a tendency toward greater equality (homogeneity) within each economic region or republic since 1960. In attempting to account for these diverse trends, it is suggested that they are largely the result of the priority of efficiency considerations in location decisions rather than those of regional equity per se.     

三江平原垦区经济发展差距及其与产业结构的关联分析

作为一种以农业专业化和规模化生产为主要特征的经济地域类型,垦区经济增长和产业结构具有鲜明的区域特色。本文采用基尼系数和灰色关联模型,探讨了三江平原垦区经济发展差距变化特征及其与产业结构的关联性。研究结果表明:①2000年以来垦区经济差距呈现先缩小后增大的趋势,农场间人均农业资源占有量的不同是垦区经济差距产生的重要基础。②垦区经济发展变化与各产业集中度变化密切相关,三次产业基尼系数变化引起的集中效应是导致垦区经济发展差距变化的主要原因。③农垦区经济发展水平与农业发展关系最为密切,多数农场经济发展仍依赖于农业综合生产能力的提高。应积极推进垦区农业现代化进程,培育非农产业集群和新的增长点,以提高垦区整体经济实力。     

基于不同区划系统的中国区域经济差异分解研究

基于不同区划系统,采用锡尔系数分解方法来定量测度中国区域经济差异。首先,基于省级空间单元,通过一阶段锡尔系数分析1978年以来中国区域差异的格局及其动态演变;然后,分别基于三大地带--省(直辖市、自治区)--地(市、区、自治州)或者县(市辖区、县级市、县)这两类三级结构的地域行政单元,运用二阶段嵌套锡尔系数分解方法,将差异进一步分解至省内差异水平上,由此揭示出不同于省际分析的区域经济差异特征:省内差异是全国总体差异的重要组分,对于总体差异的影响较地带间差异和省间差异显著得多。     

Global Poverty and Inequality: Change and Continuity in Late Development

This contribution assesses the ‘converging divergence’ thesis that global inequality is falling and national inequality is rising. The article argues that falling global inequality is primarily due to China's development and that national inequality has risen in some developing countries and fallen in others. In light of the dominance of China's development in the global picture, questions arise as to what has changed and what has not changed outside of China. A set of changes and continuities is presented. It is then argued that these changes and continuities provide for the contemporary relevance an older conceptual lens — that of ‘late development’.     

Mapping the Political Landscape: Toward a GIS Analysis of Environmental and Social Difference

This paper employs geographic information systems (GIS) to analyze the relationship between environmental context and social inequality. Using recent archaeological data from the political center of the Inka Empire (Cuzco, Peru), it investigates how material and spatial boundaries embed social differences within the environment at both local and regional scales. In doing so, the paper moves beyond conventional archaeological GIS approaches that treat the environment as a unitary phenomenon. It develops a methodological and theoretical framework for the examination of a political landscape—the distinct spaces and materials that differentially shape people’s social experience and perception of their environment.     

黄河流域区域经济差异的时空动态分析

以黄河流域的各地级市为研究单元,人均GDP为测度指标,综合运用不同时空动态分析方法,在Open Geoda和Pysal2.7软件支持下,对1990-2013年黄河流域73个地级市经济发展水平空间格局和演变过程进行分析。研究表明:黄河流域整体区域经济差异呈现先扩大后减小的趋势,东部地区内部差异最显著对整体差异贡献最大,中部、西部区域经济差异相对稳定;流域经济空间异质性明显,存在显著的空间正相关,区域经济格局两极化明显且东部经济水平明显高于中西部地区,流域经济发展的热点区主要分布在山东省内,冷点区主要分布在甘肃、陕西、青海等部分州市;通过分析黄河流域73个地级市经济发展类型时空演变特征,反映出黄河流域经济发展存在俱乐部趋同趋势,初始状态对区域经济发展具有重要作用,区域背景亦具有一定作用,区域经济水平的跨越式发展基本不存在。     

The Brazilian State Data Bank

Abstract

This study examines metropolitan segmentation in educational attainment during the postwar era. Employing a multilevel analytical approach with U.S. Census data drawn from IPUMS, it finds urban-suburban distinctions shifted and grew in magnitude. While students in central cities enjoyed an educational advantage in 1940, by 1980 it was suburban youth who clearly exhibited higher levels of attainment. Various explanations for these developments are considered as topics for further exploration, including the significance of suburban development in regional economic growth and the changing dynamics of racial inequality in education. Particular attention is devoted to methodological issues in conducting this sort of analysis with these data.     

Regional polarization in the European Union

This paper examines the level and evolution of polarization in regional per capita income in the European Union between 1977 and 1999. In this analysis, non-parametric estimation techniques are combined with the calculation of various polarization measures. The results obtained suggest a decrease in regional polarization in the European context during the period analysed, as a consequence of various factors, at times working in opposite directions. The findings also reveal the existence of discrepancies between the evolution of polarization and regional inequality. Finally, the analysis carried out highlights the importance of the role played by the national component and the spatial dimension in the formation of homogeneous groups of regions linked by similar development levels in the distribution under study.     

From Strategic Coupling to Recoupling and Decoupling: Restructuring Global Production Networks and Regional Evolution in China

The global production networks (GPNs) perspective, especially its focal concept of “strategic coupling” has been widely applied to regional studies in the era of globalization. The 2000s, especially the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, has witnessed a dramatic restructuring of the governance structure of GPNs; the effects on regional evolution have, however, been understudied. Echoing to MacKinnon's [(2012) Beyond strategic coupling: Reassessing the firm-region Nexus in global production networks, Journal of Economic Geography, 12, pp. 227–245] recent plea for conceptualizing the types, degree and depth of strategic coupling in the GPNs framework, this paper postulates that regional trajectories have been reshaped by the transition from strategic coupling to recoupling and decoupling, as a result of regional selection and abandonment of transnational corporations (TNCs) in host regions in China. Based on updated field investigation and in-depth interviews during the period of mid-2008 and early 2012, this paper examines and compares the transformation of the cross-border production networks driven by Hong Kong and Taiwan-based TNCs, particularly their divergent engagements in decoupling from source regions in coastal China, e.g. the Pearl River Delta and recoupling with the inland provinces, such as Sichuan and Hubei. Particular attention is paid to the changing power relations among TNCs and concerned regions with the emergence of key supplier-led domestic market-oriented production networks in China. Through developing an evolutionary framework on strategic coupling, the paper puts forward pertinent topics on the research agenda to explore dynamic interaction between GPN restructuring and regional evolution in the contemporary global economy.     

云南省反贫困地理信息系统建设初探

本文从信息系统为决策支持服务的角度出发,以GIS、RS为手段,综合自然、经济、社会、环境等因素,多学科交叉,设计反贫困GIS的总体框架结构,研究和解决面向管理和决策的数据模型,实现致贫基本因素、贫困类型分布与贫困形势变化监测等方面的信息查询与辅助决策分析为一体的综合地理信息系统,为区域反贫困决策的各层次提供辅助分析与决策支持,为反贫困决策提供科学依据。     

100年来东北地区经济地域格局的演变

东北地区经济地域格局的形成与发展受区域环境与经济成本的双重约束。基于100年来东北地区交通网络化过程分析,通过统计分析与现代GIS空间分析方法相结合,作者探讨不同时间序列东北地区的主要经济、社会发展特征,重点分析了37个城市区域的人口、经济等的空间集聚与边缘化特征以及土地利用变化、城市空间扩展等,揭示东北地区不同时期经济地域格局的演化机制,并预测其基本走向。