Income Distribution in Urban China During the Period of Economic Reform and Globalization.

This article addresses three issues that are central to understanding the effects of the transition in China from central planning to a more market-oriented economic system. First, what have been the consequences of economic reforms for the distribution of income in urban areas? Second, what has happened to the incidence of urban poverty? Third, have government policies helped to diminish or accentuate urban poverty and inequality? The authors address these issues by comparing two national sample surveys conducted in 1988 and 1995. The authors found that the increase in urban inequality between 1988 and 1995 was due to greater inequality in the distribution of most of the major components of income, rather than to a change in the composition of income.