|
on Microeconomic European Issues |
|
Issue of 2021‒02‒08
twenty-six papers chosen by Giuseppe Marotta Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia |
| By: | Jonathan Colmer; Ralf Martin; Mirabelle Muûls; Ulrich J. Wagner |
| Abstract: | In theory, market-based regulatory instruments correct market failures at least cost. However, evidence on their efficacy remains scarce. We evaluate the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) - the world's first and largest market-based climate policy. Using administrative data on almost 4,000 French manufacturing firms, we estimate that the EU ETS induced regulated firms to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 8-12% compared to unregulated firms after the Pilot phase, a necessary condition for climate change mitigation. These reductions account for 26% of the concurrent decline in aggregate industrial emission in France. We do not estimate any negative effects on the scale of production; instead we find that firms reduced the emissions intensity of value added by making targeted investments. We find no evidence that firms outsourced production to unregulated firms or markets. Collectively, these findings suggest that the EU ETS induced global emissions reductions, a necessary and sufficient condition for mitigating climate change. |
| Keywords: | climate, externalities & environmental regulation, trade and environment |
| JEL: | Q58 H23 F18 |
| Date: | 2020–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1728&r=all |
| By: | Christofzik, Désirée I.; Feld, Lars P.; Yeter, Mustafa |
| Abstract: | Using quarterly data for German counties, we study how housing prices and offers respond to higher transaction costs induced by tax increases. Since 2006, states can set their own tax rates on real estate transfers. Several and substantial tax hikes generate variation across time and states which we exploit in our empirical analysis using an event study design. Our results indicate that prices and offers decrease significantly by 3% and 6% already in the quarter in which the tax increase is announced in press but rise subsequently. Furthermore, we find heterogeneous responses when distinguishing between different types of counties. Housing prices decrease persistently in shrinking counties, while this is at most temporarily the case in growing, central and peripheral counties. This implies that the economic incidence of this tax varies across transactions. |
| Keywords: | Real estate transfer tax,real estate prices,housing market,tax incidence,anticipation effects |
| JEL: | H20 H22 H71 R32 R38 |
| Date: | 2020 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:svrwwp:102020&r=all |
| By: | Debrabant, Kristian (Department of Mathematics and Computer Science); Grønbæk, Lone (Department of Business and Economics); Kronborg, Christian (Department of Business and Economics) |
| Abstract: | Vaccines against COVID-19 are under development. As a scarce resource, the health authorities have to decide how to prioritise the vaccine in the target population. The aim of this paper is to explore the cost-effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccine and to analyse how the vaccine price, and the cost of administrating it, influence its cost-effectiveness. We consider an epidemiological model developed by Statens Serum Institut (SSI) to determine the possible effects of a vaccine in terms of the number of life-years gained and hospital cost saved. The model allows us to differentiate between two populations groups, those above and below 60 years of age, respectively. We used the model to consider four scenarios: 1) vaccination of 1.5 million persons 60 years of age or older, none below that age, 2) vaccination of 1.5 million persons below the age of 60 years, none above that age, 3) vaccination of 900.000 persons below 60 years of age and 1.5 million person 60 years of age or older, and 4) 2.4 million persons below the age of 60 years. The time horizon of the analysis is six months, and the perspective is that of the Danish healthcare sector. The results show that inclusion of the elderly population 60 years of age or older is more cost-effective than a vaccination strategy targeted a population which is younger than 60 years old only. Furthermore, the results show that an extension of the target group from the elderly population only, to also include the younger population comes with an increasing cost per life-year gained. These findings are independent of the specification of the cost of hospitalization for treating COVID-19 infections and the costs of the vaccine. However, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio depends on the price of the vaccine, hereunder also the administration costs, and the discount rate used for the estimation of life-years gained from a vaccine. |
| Keywords: | Cost-effectiveness analysis; COVID-19 vaccine |
| JEL: | C63 D60 I18 |
| Date: | 2021–01–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:sdueko:2021_002&r=all |
| By: | Daniel Herrero (Instituto Complutense de Estudios Internacionales (ICEI), Universidad Complutense de Madrid.) |
| Abstract: | This article analyzes the causes of the exporting performance of the German manufacturing sector. By applying a subsystem approach to the input-output analysis, we take into account the interlinkages that exist between manufacturing and services. Particularly, two types of relationships that influence manufacturing competitiveness are considered: the wage squeeze in services due to institutional factors and outsourcing; and the role played by the knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) as innovation drivers. With vertically integrated sectors as observations, an export model is estimated. Overall, our results point to the minor importance of labor costs for international competitiveness. We also capture a significant but small effect of service suppliers’labor cost on manufacturing exports. We find that KIBS have helped manufacturing gain international competitiveness. The paper concludes that non-price factors are the main drivers of German exports and that the relationship between manufacturing and services is not only a matter of cost reduction. |
| Keywords: | Unit labor costs; Competitiveness; Germany; Manufacturing; Productive linkages; Input-output |
| Date: | 2020 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucm:wpaper:2005&r=all |
| By: | Krekel, Christian; Rechlitz, Julia; Rode, Johannes; Zerrahn, Alexander |
| Abstract: | Although there is strong support for renewable energy plants, they are often met with local resistance. We quantify the externalities of renewable energy plants using well-being data. We focus on the example of biogas, one of the most frequently deployed technologies besides wind and solar. To this end, we combine longitudinal household data with novel panel data on more than 13,000 installations in Germany. Identification rests on a spatial difference-in-differences design exploiting exact geographical coordinates of households, biogas installations and wind direction and intensity. We find limited evidence for negative externalities: impacts are moderate in size and spatially confined to a radius of 2,000 metres around plants. We discuss implications for research and regional planning, in particular minimum setback distances and potential monetary compensations. |
| Keywords: | renewables; biogas; externalities; social acceptance; wellbeing; spatial analysis; economic geography |
| JEL: | C23 Q42 Q51 R20 |
| Date: | 2020–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:108526&r=all |
| By: | Andreas Beerli (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland); Jan Ruffner (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland); Michael Siegenthaler (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland); Giovanni Peri (Department of Economics, UC Davis, USA) |
| Abstract: | We study a reform that granted European cross-border workers free access to the Swiss labor market and had a stronger effect on regions close to the border. The greater availability of cross-border workers increased foreign employment substantially. Although many cross-border workers were highly educated, wages of highly educated natives increased. The reason is a simultaneous increase in labor demand: the reform increased the size, productivity, and innovation performance of skill-intensive incumbent firms and attracted new firms, creating opportunities for natives to pursue managerial jobs. These effects are mainly driven by firms that reported skill shortages before the reform. |
| Keywords: | border region, cross-border workers, free movement of persons, firm performance, firm relocation, immigration policy, immigration restrictions, labor mobility, skilled immigration |
| JEL: | F22 J22 J24 J61 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kof:wpskof:20-486&r=all |
| By: | Davillas, Apostolos (University of East Anglia); Jones, Andrew M. (University of York) |
| Abstract: | We use data from the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHLS) to compare measures of socioeconomic inequality in psychological distress, measured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), before (Waves 9 and the Interim 2019 Wave) and during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (April to July 2020). Based on a caseness measure, the prevalence of psychological distress increased from 18.5% to 27.7% between the 2019 Wave and April 2020 with some reversion to earlier levels in subsequent months. Also, there was a systematic increase in total inequality in the Likert GHQ-12 score. However, measures of relative socioeconomic inequality have not increased. A Shapley-Shorrocks decomposition analysis shows that during the peak of the first wave of the pandemic (April 2020) other socioeconomic factors declined in their share of socioeconomic inequality, while age and gender account for a larger share. The most notable increase is evident for younger women. The contribution of working in an industry related to the COVID-19 response played a small role at Wave 9 and the Interim 2019 Wave, but more than tripled its share in April 2020. As the first wave of COVID-19 progressed, the contribution of demographics declined from their peak level in April and chronic health conditions, housing conditions, and neighbourhood characteristics increased their contributions to socioeconomic inequality. |
| Keywords: | mental health, GHQ, socioeconomic inequality, health equity, COVID-19, psychological distress |
| JEL: | C1 D63 I12 I14 |
| Date: | 2021–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp14057&r=all |
| By: | Björn Thor Arnarson (University of Copenhagen) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the role of large-outbreaks on the persistence of Covid-19 over time. Using data from 649 European regions in 14 countries, I first show that school-breaks in late February/early March (weeks 8, 9 and 10) led to large regional outbreaks of Covid-19 in the spring with the spread being 60% and up-to over 90% higher compared to regions with earlier breaks. While the impact of these initial large-outbreaks fades away over the summer months it systematically reappears from the fall as regions with school-breaks in weeks 8, 9 and 10 had 30-70% higher spread. This suggests that following a large-outbreak there is a strong element of underlying (latent) regional persistence of Covid-19. The strong degree of persistence highlights the long-term benefits of effective (initial) containment policies as once a large outbreak has occurred, Covid-19 persists. This results emphasizes the need for vaccinations against Covid-19 in regions that have experienced large outbreaks, but are well below herd-immunity, to avoid a new wave of cases from the fall of 2021. |
| Keywords: | covid-19, pandemic, persistence, vaccination strategy, school-breaks |
| JEL: | A12 I1 H0 R0 Z3 |
| Date: | 2021–01–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kud:kuiedp:2102&r=all |
| By: | Claudia Hupkau; Barbara Petrongolo |
| Abstract: | We explore impacts of the pandemic crisis and associated restrictions to economic activity on paid and unpaid work for men and women in the UK. Using data from the Covid-19 supplement of Understanding Society, we find evidence that labour market outcomes of men and women were roughly equally affected at the extensive margin, as measured by the incidence of job loss or furloughing, but if anything women suffered smaller losses at the intensive margin, experiencing slightly smaller changes in hours and earnings. Within the household, women provided on average a larger share of increased childcare needs, but in an important share of households fathers became the primary childcare providers. These distributional consequences of the pandemic may be important to understand its inequality legacy over the longer term. |
| Keywords: | Covid-19, gender gaps, home production |
| JEL: | J13 J16 J22 J31 |
| Date: | 2020–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1723&r=all |
| By: | Mathias Huebener; Nico A. Siegel; C. Katharina Spiess; Gert G. Wagner; Sevrin Waights |
| Abstract: | We examine the differential effects of Covid-19 and related restrictions on individuals with dependent children in Germany. We specifically focus on the role of school and day care center closures, which may be regarded as a "disruptive exogenous shock" to family life. We make use of a novel representative survey of parental well-being collected in May and June 2020 in Germany, when schools and day care centers were closed but while other measures had been relaxed and new infections were low. In our descriptive analysis, we compare well-being during this period with a pre-crisis period for different groups. In a difference-in-differences design, we compare the change for individuals with children to the change for individuals without children, accounting for unrelated trends as well as potential survey mode and context effects. We find that the crisis lowered the relative well-being of individuals with children, especially for individuals with young children, for women, and for persons with lower secondary schooling qualifications. Our results suggest that public policy measures taken to contain Covid-19 can have large effects on family well-being, with implications for child development and parental labor market outcomes. |
| Keywords: | Well-being, Covid-19, Corona virus, day care closures, school closures, COMPASS, SOEP |
| JEL: | D1 H12 H75 I2 |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1713&r=all |
| By: | DI PIETRO Giorgio (European Commission - JRC); KARPINSKI Zbigniew (European Commission - JRC); BIAGI Federico (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | This report looks at the impact of the business cycle on participation in adult learning in the EU-27 using aggregate quarterly country level data for the period 2005Q1 – 2019Q4. Data come from the EU Labour Force Survey. Although downturns may give individuals more incentives and more time to update their skills and knowledge, their ability to pay for such investment as well as employers’ willingness to train workforce are both likely to fall during recessions. Which of these effects prevails is an empirical open question. In an attempt to investigate this issue, the analysis presented here: i) documents a large cross country variability in the levels of total adult learning (participation rate in total adult learning is greater in Nordic countries compared to the other EU countries); ii) shows that, in the EU as a whole, the share of individuals involved in non-formal adult learning tends to correlate positively with the employment rate (i.e. non-formal adult learning is procyclical); iii) points out that the procyclicality of the relationship between total adult learning and the business cycle is more pronounced in Eastern and Western countries as compared to Nordic and Southern countries. |
| Keywords: | Adult learning, Business cycle |
| Date: | 2021–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc123218&r=all |
| By: | Enea Baselgia (University of St.Gallen, Switzerland); Isabel Z. Martínez (KOF Swiss Economic Institute, ETH Zurich, Switzerland) |
| Abstract: | We estimate the ratio of private wealth to national income, βpt, for Switzerland over the period 1900–2018. Our results indicate that the development of βpt in Switzerland did not follow a U-shaped pattern as in most European countries, but that the evolution was extraordinarily stable, with βpt oscillating around 500% over most of the 20th century. However, the wealth-income ratio has been on the rise since the turn of the century to reach 721% in 2017 – an unprecedented level in the past. This considerable increase is mainly driven by large capital gains in housing wealth since 2010. We present new cross-country evidence that capital gains in housing wealth have become an important driver of rising wealth-income ratios in a series of developed economies. |
| Keywords: | wealth-income ratio; income distribution; economic growth; housing prices |
| JEL: | N34 D31 D33 E01 |
| Date: | 2020–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kof:wpskof:20-487&r=all |
| By: | Evelina Björkegren; Mikael Lindahl; Mårten Palme; Emilia Simeonova |
| Abstract: | We use data from a large sample of adoptees born in Sweden to study to what extent the well-established association between parental educational attainments and adult health of the child generation can be attributed to pre- or post-birth factors, respectively. We find a significant association between the educational attainment of the adopting parents and child health outcomes as adults. These results suggest that growing up in a better-educated household has long-term effects on health outcomes. Our analysis of the mechanisms behind the results suggests that formation of human capital, and in particular cognitive and non-cognitive skills, may be important. |
| JEL: | I1 I12 I14 I26 |
| Date: | 2020–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:28214&r=all |
| By: | Paolo Naticchioni; Vincenzo Scrutinio; Edoardo di Porto |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the effect of exemption of essential sectors from the lockdown enacted in Italy in Spring 2020 on COVID-19 infections and mortality. We exploit the distribution of the density of essential workers across provinces and rich administrative data in a difference in difference framework. We find that a standard deviation increase in essential workers per square kilometre leads to about 1.1 additional daily registered cases per 100,000 inhabitants. In addition, we show that a similar change in density leads to 0.32 additional daily deaths per 100,000 inhabitants. Back of envelope computations suggest that about one third of the Covid-19 cases in the period considered could be attributed to the less stringent lockdown for essential sectors as well as about 13,000 additional deaths, with an additional 107 million Euros in direct expenditure for the National Health System. In addition, we find that these effects are heterogeneous across sectors, with Services having a much larger impact than Manufacturing, and across geographic areas, with smaller benefits in areas less affected by the pandemic. These results are stable across a wide range of specifications and robustness check. |
| Keywords: | COVID-19, lockdown, essential sectors |
| JEL: | J18 I18 |
| Date: | 2020–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1720&r=all |
| By: | Odolinski, Kristofer (Swedish National Road & Transport Research Institute (VTI)); Lidén, Tomas (Swedish National Road & Transport Research Institute (VTI)) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we estimate the impact of line capacity utilisation on the marginal cost of rail infrastructure renewals. Previous studies are mainly concerned with deterioration costs caused by traffic. This paper contributes to the literature, showing that increased line capacity utilisation can – in addition to higher deterioration costs – generate increased costs for carrying out a renewal project and/or more frequent renewals, where the latter can be motivated by efforts to curb expected delays. A top-down econometric approach is used on a Swedish dataset comprising information on renewal costs for track, electric installations, signalling, telecommunication, and other installations such as barriers, fencing and lubrication equipment. The results are relevant for rail infrastructure managers, especially in Europe where directives by the EU stipulate that track access charges are to be based on direct costs in order to contribute to an efficient use of the infrastructure. |
| Keywords: | Marginal cost; Capacity utilisation; Renewal; Rail infrastructure; Access charging |
| JEL: | H54 L92 R48 |
| Date: | 2021–01–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:vtiwps:2021_001&r=all |
| By: | Schreiner, Nicolas (University of Basel) |
| Abstract: | Elections constitute the essential element of democracy, yet surprisingly little is known about their immediate consequences for individual well-being. Cross-country empirical evidence is particularly absent for the campaign period leading up to elections. While elections as a process allow citizens to contribute to democratic quality, they are also intrinsically conflictual and require voters to exert effort to make informed decisions. To measure the aggregate changes in well-being along the entirety of the electoral process, I use survey data from before and after 148 national elections in 24 European countries between 1989 and 2019. Respondents interviewed in the months preceding election day report significantly lower levels of life satisfaction than their compatriots asked the same calendar week but in years without elections. Once voting has taken place, aggregate well-being immediately returns to its regular average. Exploratory analyses suggest that partisan conflict and social pressures regarding democratic participation may play a role in explaining the reduction in life satisfaction before elections. |
| Keywords: | elections, well-being, life satisfaction, election campaigns, electoral systems, political polarization, eurobarometer |
| JEL: | D72 D91 I31 |
| Date: | 2021–01–21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bsl:wpaper:2021/03&r=all |
| By: | Catarina Midões; Mateo Seré |
| Abstract: | The COVID-19 crisis has led to substantial reductions in earnings. We propose a new measure of ï¬ nancial vulnerability, computable through survey data, to determine whether households can withstand a certain income shock for a deï¬ ned period of time. Using data from the ECB Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS) we analyse pre-existing ï¬ nancial vulnerability in seven EU countries. We ï¬ nd that income support is essential for many families: 47.2 million individuals, out of the 243 million considered, cannot afford three months of food and housing expenses without privately earned income. Differences across countries are stark, and those born outside of the EU are especially vulnerable. Through a tax-beneï¬ t microsimulation exercise, we then derive household net income when employees are laid-off and awarded the COVID-19 employment protection beneï¬ ts enacted in the different countries. Our ï¬ ndings suggest that the COVID-19 employment protection schemes awarded are extremely effective in reducing the number of vulnerable individuals. The relative importance of rent and mortgage suspensions in alleviating vulnerability is highly country dependent. |
| Date: | 2020–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hdl:wpaper:2008&r=all |
| By: | Tiziana Carpi; Airo Hino; Stefano Maria Iacus; Giuseppe Porro |
| Abstract: | This study analyzes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the subjective well-being as measured through Twitter data indicators for Japan and Italy. It turns out that, overall, the subjective well-being dropped by 11.7% for Italy and 8.3% for Japan in the first nine months of 2020 compared to the last two months of 2019 and even more compared to the historical mean of the indexes. Through a data science approach we try to identify the possible causes of this drop down by considering several explanatory variables including, climate and air quality data, number of COVID-19 cases and deaths, Facebook Covid and flu symptoms global survey, Google Trends data and coronavirus-related searches, Google mobility data, policy intervention measures, economic variables and their Google Trends proxies, as well as health and stress proxy variables based on big data. We show that a simple static regression model is not able to capture the complexity of well-being and therefore we propose a dynamic elastic net approach to show how different group of factors may impact the well-being in different periods, even over a short time length, and showing further country-specific aspects. Finally, a structural equation modeling analysis tries to address the causal relationships among the COVID-19 factors and subjective well-being showing that, overall, prolonged mobility restrictions,flu and Covid-like symptoms, economic uncertainty, social distancing and news about the pandemic have negative effects on the subjective well-being. |
| Date: | 2021–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2101.07695&r=all |
| By: | Maike Becker; Gregor Pfeifer; Karsten Schweikert |
| Abstract: | Fuel prices are commonly perceived to be excessively high, which regularly triggers political discussions about fuel price regulations. Consumers demand stricter fuel price regulations to provide transparency about the current price level and to protect them from sudden price fluctuations. Such regulations are already in place in several countries, but whether they indeed help lower the overall fuel price level is unclear. In this paper, we study the effect of Austria’s Fuel Price Fixing Act on gasoline and diesel price levels. Using the synthetic control method, we construct a counterfactual and estimate Austria’s price trends in absence of the intervention. Our empirical results suggest, that immediately after the Fuel Price Fixing Act came into effect, gasoline prices are 23.4% lower than the synthetic control predicts. The effect on diesel prices appears to be less pronounced and amounts to 6.6% lower prices. Austria’s fuel price regulation seems to have been effective in terms of gasoline prices but may need further refinements to effectively tackle diesel prices as well. |
| Keywords: | causal effects, diesel, gasoline, price regulation, retail fuel prices |
| JEL: | C22 D43 Q41 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_8819&r=all |
| By: | Eric Schuss |
| Abstract: | We estimate the causal effect exerted by substantial redistribution of care worker apprenticeship costs on the training supply of care facilities. We exploit the fact that the underlying apprenticeship levy was introduced across the German federal states at different points in time. For ambulatory care, we find a robust positive effect on the probability of hiring new apprentices and on the number of new apprentices in the short and in the longer run. For inpatient care facilities, the probability of providing apprenticeship training is not affected, but positive effects emerge in respect of the number of new apprentices in the medium run. |
| Keywords: | Apprenticeship training, Care workers, Sectoral training levies, Labor supply shortage, Difference-in-differences |
| JEL: | J23 J24 I18 C21 |
| Date: | 2021–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iso:educat:0176&r=all |
| By: | Koen Decancq |
| Abstract: | Well-being is a multidimensional concept. In addition to income, people care about non-monetary dimensions, like health and housing quality. To determine how a society is doing in this regard, it is important to consider both the distributions across these various dimensions and the dependence between dimensions. Do the same people score low on all dimensions, or do some score high on some dimensions and low on others? I say that individuals who occupy a low position on all dimensions of life at the same time, suffer from cumulative deprivation. The position of these individuals is particularly precarious, as a low score on one dimension is further reinforced by low scores on other dimensions. In this article, we chart cumulative deprivation in Belgium, based on the MEQIN dataset: a broad dataset containing detailed information on various dimensions of life (e.g., income, health and housing quality for a random sample of Belgians in 2016). Walloon women who are not in a relationship and who have not completed secondary education are particularly likely to suffer from cumulative deprivation. Finally, the discussion addresses several channels along which deprivation can accumulate across dimensions. |
| Date: | 2020–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hdl:wpaper:2007&r=all |
| By: | Sandra E. Black; Paul J. Devereux; Fanny Landaud; Kjell G. Salvanes |
| Abstract: | Much attention has been given to rising wealth inequality in recent decades. However, understanding inequality requires an understanding of how wealth relates to the potential wealth an individual could accumulate and where this wealth comes from. Using administrative data from Norway, we create measures of potential wealth that abstract from differential consumption and spending behavior. We then examine how these measures relate to observed net wealth of individuals at a point in time and the role played by different sources of wealth in the distribution of potential wealth. We find that net wealth is a reasonable proxy for potential wealth, particularly in the tails of the distribution. Importantly, people in different parts of the potential wealth (or actual net wealth) distribution get their wealth from very different sources. Labor income is the most important determinant of wealth, except among the top 1%, where capital income and capital gains on financial assets become important. Inheritances and gifts are not an important determinant of wealth, even at the top of the wealth distribution. Finally, although inheritances are not important, parental wealth does influence child’s wealth; children of wealthy parents accumulate wealth from very different sources than children of less wealthy parents. |
| JEL: | G51 J01 J1 |
| Date: | 2020–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:28239&r=all |
| By: | Denis Fougère (OSC - Observatoire sociologique du changement - Sciences Po - Sciences Po - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, LIEPP - Laboratoire interdisciplinaire d'évaluation des politiques publiques [Sciences Po] - Sciences Po - Sciences Po, CEPR - Center for Economic Policy Research - CEPR, IZA - Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit - Institute of Labor Economics); Hippolyte d'Albis (CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, PSE - Paris School of Economics - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - ENS Paris - École normale supérieure - Paris - PSL - Université Paris sciences et lettres - UP1 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - INRAE - Institut National de Recherche pour l’Agriculture, l’Alimentation et l’Environnement); Pierre Gouedard (OCDE - Organisation de Coopération et de Développement Economiques, LIEPP - Laboratoire interdisciplinaire d'évaluation des politiques publiques [Sciences Po] - Sciences Po - Sciences Po) |
| Date: | 2021–01–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-03098517&r=all |
| By: | Oskari Harjunen (VATT Institute for Economic Research, Arkadiankatu 7, Helsinki, FI-00101); Tuukka Saarimaa (Aalto University School of Business and School of Engineering and Helsinki Graduate School of Economics, Ekonominaukio 1, Espoo, FI-02150); Janne Tukiaianen (Department of Economics, Turku School of Economics, Rehtorinpellonkatu 3, FI-20014 University of Turku, Finland; VATT Institute for Economic Research, Arkadiankatu 7, FI-00101, Helsinki, Finland) |
| Abstract: | We study the link between geographic political representation and geographic distribution of public goods within local jurisdictions using geo-coded data on politicians, the electorate and elementary school closures. We find that poorer neighborhoods are under-represented. Inequality in geographic representation matters as the probability of school closure halves from about 20% to 10% when a candidate close to the school is randomly elected due to ties in personal vote counts. Highincome residents react to school closures by moving away from their neighborhood. Taken together, residential sorting leads to inequality in representation and public goods across neighborhoods, which further reinforces residential segregation. |
| Keywords: | Geographic representation, random elections, residential segregation, school closure |
| JEL: | C21 D72 H75 R23 |
| Date: | 2021–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tkk:dpaper:dp138&r=all |
| By: | Fateh Belaïd; Christophe Rault; Camille Massié |
| Abstract: | This paper develops a pseudo-panel approach to examine household electricity demand behaviour through the household life cycle and its response to income variations to help strengthen the energy policy-making process. Our empirical methodology is based on three rich independent microdata surveys (the National Housing Surveys), which are representative of the French housing sector. The resulted sample covers the 2006-2016 period. Using within estimations, this paper finds striking evidence that the income elasticity of French residential electricity demand is 0.22, averaged over our four cohorts of generations. In light of other works, our estimate stands in the lower range. The empirical results also show that residential electricity consumption follows an inverted U-shaped distribution as a function of the age of the household's head. Most notably, it appears that households at the mid-point of their life cycle are relatively the largest consumers of electricity. This outcome has important implications for policy-making. Any public policy aimed at reducing household energy consumption should consider this differentiation in consumption according to the position of households over the life cycle, and therefore target as priority households at the highest level of consumption. |
| Keywords: | residential electricity demand, pseudo-panel, energy policy, France |
| JEL: | C23 D12 Q21 Q41 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_8814&r=all |
| By: | Nishant Yonzan (CUNY Graduate Center); Branko Milanovic (Stone Center on Socio-economic Inequality and CUNY Graduate Center); Salvatore Morelli (Stone Center on Socio-economic Inequality and CUNY Graduate Center and CSEF); Janet Gornick (Stone Center on Socio-economic Inequality and CUNY Graduate Center) |
| Abstract: | The paper uses the flexibility of household survey data to align their income categories and recipient units with the income categories and units found in data produced by tax authorities. Our analyses, based on a standardized definition of fiscal income, allow us to locate, for top-income groups, the sources of discrepancy. We find, using the cases of the United States, Germany, and France, that the results from survey-based and tax data correspond extremely well (in terms of total income, mean income, composition of income, and income shares) above the 90th percentile and up to the top 1 percent of the distribution. Information about income composition, available in the US, allows us to investigate the determinants of this gap in the US. About three-fourths of the tax/survey gap is due to differences in non-labor incomes, especially self-employment (business) income. The gap itself may be due to tax-induced re-classification of income from corporate to personal or/and to lower ability of surveys to capture top 1 percent incomes. |
| Keywords: | Income, Inequality, Survey Data, Tax Data. |
| JEL: | D31 |
| Date: | 2021–01–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sef:csefwp:600&r=all |