2009 Reports

The Changing Nature of Urban Poverty in China

Riskin, Carl A.; Gao, Qin

Our analysis is based upon the three round China Household Income Project (CHIP) surveys of household income carried out by an international team under the aegis of the Institute of Economics, Chinese Academy of Social Science. The CHIP studies defined household disposable income to include direct subsidies, income-in-kind, and the rental value of owned housing, in keeping with standard international practice. Income thus defined has exceeded income as officially defined and has changed differently, as well, especially in urban areas where formerly large subsidies faded away while rental value of owned housing burgeoned with the housing reform (Khan & Riskin, 2001, 2005). After summarizing available estimates of the size and trends of urban poverty, we use an urban poverty line fashioned by Khan (Khan & Riskin 2001; Khan 2004) to examine the changing characteristics of China's urban poor, and then explore whether recent declines in urban poverty are the fruits of the direct benefits and safety net programs that China has been establishing.