Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the factors which increased the income inequality in rural
China, using the existing public data and a micro data-set of rural household survey in Sichuan and
Anhui province in 1999, conducted by the National Bureau of Statistics.
The main results are as follows.
Firstly, the increase in income inequality in rural Sichuan caused by the composition change in
household size was statistically confirmed in the first half of the 2000’s. Therefore, the income
inequality in rural inland has not risen more than current estimates for this period. Secondly, the income inequality in young person and aged hierarchy is comparatively large though a clear relation is not seen between the age of householder and the income gap according to the analysis on Anhui and Sichuan. Moreover, the income inequality between age hierarchies of householder is extremely small compared with the entire inequality. Therefore, it is thought that the change in the age structure doesn’t have a big influence on the personal income distribution in rural China. Especially, because the household share of aged hierarchy increases and the household
share of young person hierarchy decreases, the change in age distribution hardly influences the change in the income inequality from middle of 1990’s to 2005.Thirdly, 30 percent of the Gini coefficient increase of net income from 1990 to 2005 is explained by the income structure change (the factors related to economic development). Moreover, 70 percent is explained by change of inequality of income sources (Pseudo-Gini coefficient). That is, the governmental policy of non-economic development element had a big influence on the income inequality in rural China. finally, the contribution rate of inequality change of the household business income has risen more than that of the income structure change for the inequality increase of net income. Moreover, the structural adjustment of agriculture production influences the inequality increase of household business income.
