The impacts of social pension on rural household expenditure: evidence from China. Issue 3 (2nd July 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zheng, Huamao; Zhong, Teng
• Is Part Of: Journal of economic policy reform. Volume 19:Issue 3(2016)
• Page Start: 221
• Page End: 237
• Publication Date: 2016-07-02
• Subjects: social pension -- household consumption -- agricultural production investment -- China; D12 -- D13 -- H55 -- Q12; Economic policy -- Periodicals; Commercial policy -- Periodicals; Monetary policy -- Periodicals; International trade -- Periodicals; Developing countries -- Economic policy -- Periodicals; Former Soviet republics -- Economic policy -- Periodicals; Post-communism -- Periodicals; Policy sciences -- Periodicals; 338.9
• DOI: 10.1080/17487870.2015.1041524
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1748-7870

Abstract

Abstract : In 2009, China began to implement a new social pension scheme in rural areas. We examine the impacts of this social pension on two main components of rural household expenditure, consumption and agricultural production investment. Our findings show that on average, rural households increase consumption by 1–3% and agricultural investment by as high as 6–9% in pilot counties. Further estimations reveal that the pension mainly affects the households with old-aged members and the poorer families, and that the saving rate hasn't been changed by the pension, which support more the contingent income than the life-cycle hypothesis. We also find that among various types of expenditures, the most dramatic increases have occurred in food consumption and operational inputs on agricultural production.