Redistribution, Inequality, and Growth

Redistribution, Inequality, and Growth
Author: Mr.Jonathan David Ostry
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 30
Release: 2014-02-17
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1484397657

The Fund has recognized in recent years that one cannot separate issues of economic growth and stability on one hand and equality on the other. Indeed, there is a strong case for considering inequality and an inability to sustain economic growth as two sides of the same coin. Central to the Fund’s mandate is providing advice that will enable members’ economies to grow on a sustained basis. But the Fund has rightly been cautious about recommending the use of redistributive policies given that such policies may themselves undercut economic efficiency and the prospects for sustained growth (the so-called “leaky bucket” hypothesis written about by the famous Yale economist Arthur Okun in the 1970s). This SDN follows up the previous SDN on inequality and growth by focusing on the role of redistribution. It finds that, from the perspective of the best available macroeconomic data, there is not a lot of evidence that redistribution has in fact undercut economic growth (except in extreme cases). One should be careful not to assume therefore—as Okun and others have—that there is a big tradeoff between redistribution and growth. The best available macroeconomic data do not support such a conclusion.

Financial Development and Economic Growth

Financial Development and Economic Growth
Author: Mr.Pablo Emilio Guidotti
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 38
Release: 1992-12-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1451852452

This paper examines the empirical relationship between long–run growth and the degree of financial development, proxied by the ratio of bank credit to the private sector as a fraction of GDP. We find that this proxy enters significantly and with a positive sign in growth regressions on a large cross–country sample, but with a negative sign using panel data for Latin America. Our findings suggest that the main channel of transmission from financial development to growth is the efficiency of investment, rather than its volume. We also present a model where the negative correlation between financial intermediation and growth results from financial liberalization in a poor regulatory environment.

Inequality and Growth

Inequality and Growth
Author: Theo S. Eicher
Publisher: MIT Press
Total Pages: 343
Release: 2003
Genre: Economic development
ISBN: 0262050692

Essays exploring the relationship between economic growth and inequality and the implications for policy makers.

Finance, Growth, and Public Policy

Finance, Growth, and Public Policy
Author: Mark Gertler
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Total Pages: 50
Release: 1991
Genre: Crecimiento economico
ISBN:

A thriving financial market depends not only on a prudent regulatory regime but also on having enough creditworthy borrowers. Policies in the real sector- macroeconomic, public finance, and trade policies- that directly stimulate growth and stability should be pursued in concert with financial reform.

Credit Markets with Differences in Abilities

Credit Markets with Differences in Abilities
Author: Mr.Se-Jik Kim
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 36
Release: 1994-04-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1451972962

This paper addresses the growth, welfare, and distributional effects of credit markets. We construct a general equilibrium model where human capital is the engine of growth and individuals differ in their education abilities. We argue that the existence of credit markets encourages specialization, by which individuals choose during their youth to work or to receive formal education. This specialization unambiguously increases growth and welfare. The model also shows that in economies with high (low) average level of education abilities, the opening of credit markets induces a more disperse (equal) income distribution.

Causes and Consequences of Income Inequality

Causes and Consequences of Income Inequality
Author: Ms.Era Dabla-Norris
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 39
Release: 2015-06-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1513547437

This paper analyzes the extent of income inequality from a global perspective, its drivers, and what to do about it. The drivers of inequality vary widely amongst countries, with some common drivers being the skill premium associated with technical change and globalization, weakening protection for labor, and lack of financial inclusion in developing countries. We find that increasing the income share of the poor and the middle class actually increases growth while a rising income share of the top 20 percent results in lower growth—that is, when the rich get richer, benefits do not trickle down. This suggests that policies need to be country specific but should focus on raising the income share of the poor, and ensuring there is no hollowing out of the middle class. To tackle inequality, financial inclusion is imperative in emerging and developing countries while in advanced economies, policies should focus on raising human capital and skills and making tax systems more progressive.

Inequality, Leverage and Crises

Inequality, Leverage and Crises
Author: Mr.Michael Kumhof
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 39
Release: 2010-11-01
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1455210757

The paper studies how high leverage and crises can arise as a result of changes in the income distribution. Empirically, the periods 1920-1929 and 1983-2008 both exhibited a large increase in the income share of the rich, a large increase in leverage for the remainder, and an eventual financial and real crisis. The paper presents a theoretical model where these features arise endogenously as a result of a shift in bargaining powers over incomes. A financial crisis can reduce leverage if it is very large and not accompanied by a real contraction. But restoration of the lower income group's bargaining power is more effective.

Income Distribution in Macroeconomic Models

Income Distribution in Macroeconomic Models
Author: Giuseppe Bertola
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Total Pages: 439
Release: 2014-09-28
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0691164592

This book looks at the distribution of income and wealth and the effects that this has on the macroeconomy, and vice versa. Is a more equal distribution of income beneficial or harmful for macroeconomic growth, and how does the distribution of wealth evolve in a market economy? Taking stock of results and methods developed in the context of the 1990s revival of growth theory, the authors focus on capital accumulation and long-run growth. They show how rigorous, optimization-based technical tools can be applied, beyond the representative-agent framework of analysis, to account for realistic market imperfections and for political-economic interactions. The treatment is thorough, yet accessible to students and nonspecialist economists, and it offers specialist readers a wide-ranging and innovative treatment of an increasingly important research field. The book follows a single analytical thread through a series of different growth models, allowing readers to appreciate their structure and crucial assumptions. This is particularly useful at a time when the literature on income distribution and growth has developed quickly and in several different directions, becoming difficult to overview.

Links Between Growth, Inequality, and Poverty: A Survey

Links Between Growth, Inequality, and Poverty: A Survey
Author: Ms. Valerie Cerra
Publisher: International Monetary Fund
Total Pages: 54
Release: 2021-03-12
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1513572660

Is there a tradeoff between raising growth and reducing inequality and poverty? This paper reviews the theoretical and empirical literature on the complex links between growth, inequality, and poverty, with causation going in both directions. The evidence suggests that growth can be effective in reducing poverty, but its impact on inequality is ambiguous and depends on the underlying sources of growth. The impact of poverty and inequality on growth is likewise ambiguous, as several channels mediate the relationship. But most plausible mechanisms suggest that poverty and inequality reduce growth, at least in the long run. Policies play a role in shaping these relationships and those designed to improve equality of opportunity can simultaneously improve inclusiveness and growth.