Welfare accounting and the environment: reassessing Brazilian economic growth, 1965-1993

Few countries in recent decades have experienced economic growth as rapid as that in Brazil. The period spanning the late 1960s and mid 1970s, during which GDP growth was especially strong, is often referred to as the ‘economic miracle’. Yet, the use of per capita GDP growth as a proxy for economic development (or social welfare improvement) can be questioned on both distributional and environmental grounds. Scholars such as Ahluwalia and Chenery have noted that per capita GDP growth places greater weight on the income of richer income groups, and have proposed distribution‐neutral and pro‐poor alternatives. More recently, studies by the World Resources Institute and others have questioned the environmental sustainability of GDP growth and have introduced an alternative national income accounting methodology that factors in estimated losses associated with natural resource depletion. To date, no studies have undertaken both types of revisions concurrently, creating a revised national welfare measure based on per capita GDP, but corrected for both distributional bias and resource depletion. Such a measure is derived in this article and applied to the Brazilian case. The results cast doubt on the proposition that rapid economic growth in Brazil has resulted in comparable welfare gains.     

REGIONAL INCOME EVOLUTION IN SOUTH AFRICA AFTER APARTHEID*

ABSTRACT South Africa is one of the wealthiest countries on the African continent. The high national level (and growth) of GDP per capita, however, masks significant differences in economic performance across South Africa's regions. This paper uses (spatial) Markov chain techniques to describe the evolution of the entire cross‐section regional income distribution in terms of its intra‐distributional characteristics during the post‐Apartheid period. The results indicate a heavily diverging regional income distribution. Relatively poor regions are likely to remain poor or become even poorer and the richest regions will maintain their lead in terms of income levels. Explicitly taking account of space furthermore shows that these high‐income regions are acting as local growth poles, absorbing economic activity from their immediate surroundings. Location, trade, education, and the variable fortune of the gold mining industry seem to be important determinants of the observed evolution.     

Non-crisis economies must make adjustments too. World Economy survey

This article presents ?The World Economy in 1999,? a report prepared by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). It was noted in the report that 39 developing countries had gross domestic product (GDP) per capita growth exceeding 3% in 1996, compared to just 13 countries in 1999. This indicates that 32 developing countries would suffer a decline in GDP per capita by the year 2000 as compared to 14 in 1996. In addition, slow growth has been recorded at just 2% in 1998 and 1999, with only continued growth in North America and Europe keeping the world economy going. Continued slow growth was expected for the year 2000. In terms of income, commodity prices have fallen in developing countries. Net transfer of financial resources from developing countries was almost $60 billion in 1998, compared to positive flows of about $35 billion in the first half of the 1990s. Overall, the brunt of world economic slow-down had been borne by the developing and transition economies. Thus, according to Mr. Nitin Desai, it is important that there is a coordinated policy response to crisis situations, rather than expecting the crisis economies to undertake the bulk of adjustment actions. There are advantages in coordination, which should include developing countries and the Group of Seven.     

Higher education institutions,economic growth and GDP per capita in European Union countries

This paper presents an estimation of the contribution of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to economic growth and the Gross Domestic Product per capita of the European (EU) countries over the period 2000–2015. For this purpose, we analyse the universities’ effects on the supply side of their national economies, especially the contribution of the R&D of HEIs to technological capital of the European (EU) countries. We proposed a methodology of counterfactual scenarios, which assume a hypothetical situation in which HEIs do not exist, to estimating the effects of HEIs, applying techniques of growth accounting. The results obtained indicate that these effects are a significant source of growth in European (EU) countries, contributing to mitigating the adverse effects of the periods of crisis. The estimates show that GDP per capita would currently be more than 11% higher than that corresponding to a scenario without HEIs. The results obtained also show significate differences in GDP per capita between European (EU) countries associated with the activity of HEIs.     

An Assessment of the Causal Relationship between Growth and Inequality in Spanish Regions

This paper analyses the causal relationship between economic growth and income inequality in Spanish regions from 1970 to 2000. We examine such a relationship using a panel of data with four time observations on the level variables for each region. Thus, we use a modified form of traditional Granger causality tests to suit the short times series that are available. Applying a sum–difference test, we conclude that the empirical evidence supports the hypothesis that gross domestic product (GDP) per capita growth in Spanish regions leads to less income inequality, rather than any other possible causal relationship.     

The economic impact of national competition policy on Australian regions

Over the past 7 years Australia has been undergoing substantial economic reform under a collaborative Federal and State government programme known as national competition policy. These reforms have increased the nation's productivity and international competitiveness, and are generally held responsible for Australia's increased growth rate in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita over the past decade. However, the reforms have been carried out against a background of increased interregional disparities, to which the reform programme may have partly contributed. In this study we examine a number of Australian studies that have used computable general equilibrium modelling to uncover the regional economic consequences of national competition policy.     

日本出国旅游需求与人均GDP关系实证研究——兼议对我国出境旅游发展的启示

首先,基于日本1964年～2008年出国旅游相关数据,得到日本出国旅游量的收入弹性,发现日本在人均GDP（按当年价格计算）达到2000～4000美元时,出国旅游呈现爆发性增长。其次,与我国的出境旅游进行对比研究,发现我国在现价人均GDP达到3000美元时,并未出现出境旅游爆发性增长的迹象。同时,研究发现,在北京和上海人均GDP达到3000美元以上时,出境旅游呈现爆发性增长,而广州人均GDP高达8000美元以上时,出境旅游才呈现爆发性增长。     

河南省县域贫困程度及影响因素分析

贫困地区的地理识别,是区域扶贫政策精准、有效实施的前提。以经济指标衡量河南省县域相对贫困程度,并借助有序logit回归模型分析社会经济发展、自然条件、区位交通、历史基础4类变量16个影响因子对区域贫困状况的影响程度。分析发现,河南省县域综合经济发展水平存在较大的区域差异,经济发展水平相对较低的县域多分布在豫西和豫东南,且区域内存在部分潜在贫困县。回归分析结果表明,工业化水平、居民储蓄水平、气温、湿度、到最近城市的距离、国道道路密度、期初经济水平7个因子对县域贫困程度影响显著。地区扶贫政策实施过程中,在重视经济因素的减贫效应时,也应重视自然因素的致贫效应,政府主导,因地制宜,逐步实现区域协调发展。     

Premature exit from and delayed entrance into the less developed status: An empirical appraisal of the structural funds allocation criterion

This paper investigates the impact of the main criterion employed by the European Commission for the allocation of the largest portion of Structural Funds, based on the threshold of the 75% of European Union (EU) average gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. We focus on the 2014–2020 programming period and on EU-15 regions to analyze if this criterion has penalized some of them, as a consequence of the 2004 EU enlargement, which has represented an exogenous shock in the allocation process, due to the economic backwardness of new member states. Through the application of Synthetic Control Methods and Difference-in-Differences estimators at different geographical scales, we show that regions that did not obtain the less developed status in both the programming period 2007–2013 and 2014–2020, but that would have obtained it in the period 2014–2020 without the 2004 EU enlargement, experienced a significantly lower GDP per capita growth between −10.5% and −5.7%. Conversely, territories that in the period 2014–2020 lost the less developed status, previously obtained in the time frame 2007–2013, were not characterized by a significantly lower economic growth, providing some evidence of the effectiveness of the safety net.     

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TRENDS IN THE USSR, 1970-1988: PART I (PRODUCTION AND PRODUCTIVITY)

The first of two articles devoted to spatial and temporal trends in economic development and levels of living within the USSR focuses on changes in the pattern of absolute and per capita economic output—national income produced and gross value of industrial output (at the republic and economic regional level, respectively). It then investigates the question of whether divergence or convergence has occurred among republics and economic regions in terms of these indicators. Finally, it assesses patterns of change in labor and capital productivity across Soviet republics.     

湖南省经济空间结构演变及工业化主导因素分析

经济空间结构是经济地理学和区域经济学研究的重要论题之一,为了揭示湖南省经济空间结构演变过程及演变机制,分析了湖南省经济空间结构演变过程;并从工业化、区域政策和城镇化等方面分析了其经济空间结构演变机制。结果表明:20世纪80年代中期以来,湖南省经济正处于空间集聚过程,经济空间结构呈现出明显的核心-边缘模式;湖南省经济空间结构与工业化、区域政策和城镇化存在内在联系和耦合关系,其中工业发展是湖南经济增长的主要动力,也是经济空间结构形成与演化的重要原因。     

The Spatial Distribution of the Internet in the European Union: Does Geographical Proximity Matter?

This paper examines the spatial distribution of the Internet in the European regions. To achieve this aim, our analysis combines a set of non-parametric techniques proposed in the context of the economic growth literature, with various spatial econometric instruments. The results reveal that regional disparities in Internet adoption are greater than territorial inequalities in gross domestic product (GDP) per capita. In addition, our findings show that the distribution under consideration is characterized by the presence of positive spatial dependence, which implies that physically adjacent regions register a similar degree of Internet adoption. Finally, the analysis carried out allows us to assess the role played by variables such as GDP per capita, unemployment rate, stock of human capital and population density, in explaining the spatial distribution of the Internet in the European Union.     

区域经济增长的文化产业驱动效应研究——基于省级面板数据的分析

本文采用中国31个省份1996-2013年的面板数据,对中国文化产业与经济发展的内在驱动效应展开研究。研究发现:第一,文化产业投入和产出规模扩张对地区GDP和人均GDP增长具有显著作用,两者间的交互效应会加大其对经济发展的推动力;第二,文化产业有助于带动旅游业和整个第三产业发展,促进地区经济增长;第三,中国文化产业对经济发展的带动效应存在显著的地区差异,西部地区文化产业对经济发展的提升作用最大,中部和东部地区效应相对不足。因此,进一步加大对文化产业发展的政策支持,实现文化产业的合理布局,不仅能够促进整体经济增长,而且可以实现区域平衡发展。     

中国互联网与区域经济

文章运用指数定律分析了中国互联网的域名地区分布、地区人均国内生产总值分布和地区人口分布,得出的结论是:中国互联网分布是地区人均国内生产总值的反映,与地区人口分布联系不大。这证实了互联网与区域经济的紧密相关性。研究中还发现,中国互联网仍然处于高速增长期;最后给出了中国互联网增长的速度,以及到达成熟稳定时期所需的时间。     

延安市农民收入可持续增长机制探析

近年来,延安市农民人均纯收入一直低于全国平均水平,城乡居民收入差距也不断扩大。为改变这一局面,延安市政府实施了生态移民工程,进行了农业产业结构调整。这些措施在一定程度上改善了农民的生活水平,但是,制约农民收入增长的根本性障碍仍然存在。只有促进高附加值农业的可持续发展、鼓励农村剩余劳动力的外出就业和使农村非农产业实现较快发展,才能建立起农民收入的可持续增长机制。     

Income Inequality and Voter Fractionalisation: An Empirical Study of 16 Multi-Party European Democracies

This article empirically investigates relationships between voter fractionalisation and economic inequality, measured by the Gini coefficient of income inequality and a new index of fractionalisation developed for this study. Our main findings are as follows. States with high income inequality have less voter fractionalisation. States with higher GDP per capita have more voter fractionalisation. States with high election thresholds for parliamentary representation have less voter fractionalisation. Eastern European states and states with high unemployment rates have more voter fractionalisation. States with greater ethnic fractionalisation have less voter fractionalisation. Fractionalisation has been greater in recent decades (2000s and 1990s) than earlier decades (1980s).     

When Innovation Does Not Pay Off: Introducing the “European Regional Paradox”

In the last few decades, innovation has been widely recognized to be the engine of wealth and prosperity as it intensifies competition and increases productivity, which both in turn lead to significant economic benefits such as higher income per capita and increased employment. However, empirical evidence in this article illustrates that innovation seems not to have paid-off for some of the most innovative regions in Europe, as these regions, despite being highly innovative, grow at a slower pace than their national counterparts, as well as presenting poor economic outcomes such as low income per capita and high unemployment rates. The aim of this article is to communicate this intriguing observation to both innovation scholars and to policy-makers, since its very existence seems to cast doubt not only on one of the most principal assumptions in the field of innovation studies (i.e. innovation as the engine of growth) but also on one of the most fundamental pillars currently underpinning several regional, national and supranational economic policies.     

Market Potential,Productivity and Foreign Direct Investment: Some Evidence from Three Case Studies

This paper aims at analysing the importance of local determinants to foreign direct investment (FDI) in three European regional case studies. The originality of the approach lies in the use of disaggregated data by sector and by region. The results are three-fold. First, regional demand and productivity are fundamental FDI determinants, confirming most studies with national data. Second, regional FDI inflows are more dependent on regional than national determinants. Finally, the effect of market potential measured with absolute gross domestic product (GDP) on regional FDI diminishes linearly with distance and does not when measured with GDP per capita.     

Debating Belarus: An Economy in Comparative Perspective

A U.S.-based geographer and Belarusian political scientist assess the current economic crisis in Belarus. Although the country's financial situation is serious in the short term, they argue that analysis of basic social and economic indicators provides some evidence of underlying strength and stability, recently bolstered by a number of trade agreements concluded with Russia in late 2011. The authors argue that the most natural and meaningful basis for ascertaining the health of the country's economy is to compare it with those of its two Slavic neighbors, Russia and Ukraine. That comparison reveals that although Belarus ranks lower on most indices of economic reform, it has outperformed them during the post-Soviet period in several important categories (GDP growth, income equality, agricultural productivity, expenditures on education and health care, life expectancy, and per capita agricultural output) and occupied an intermediate position (below Russia but above Ukraine) in others (e.g., GDP per capita, wages and pensions, and labor productivity). The paper's final section discusses the nature of the relationship between Belarus and Russia (dependence vs. complementarity) and that between the Lukashenka regime and the Belarusian people.     

我国出境旅游发展水平的国际比较研究

出境旅游市场是我国当前三大旅游市场中增长最快的市场,对出境旅游发展水平与阶段的正确认识是理论研究与政策实践的基础。基于全球44个主要的国际旅游客源国家与地区的1980年至2004年出境旅游及相关数据,本文采用截面回归与面板数据模型进行的研究发现：随着人均GDP与人均国民总收入的增长,一国的出境旅游率将会呈现指数形态的上升,在现价美元16000元左右将会出现出境旅游的爆发性增长;但一国的出境旅游率存在大国效应,人口规模与出境旅游率呈负相关关系;研究结果还显示,只有经济发展到达一定阶段后,经济增长速度对出境旅游增长的影响才会明显表现出来。