The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004
Measured by the Gini coefficient, income inequality in Brazil rose from 0.57 in 1981 to 0.63 in 1989, before falling back to 0.56 in 2004. This latest figure would lower Brazil's world inequality rank from 2nd (in 1989) to 10th (in 2004). Poverty incidence also followed an inverted U-curve over...
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| Format: | Policy Research Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Washington, DC
2012
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2006/03/6634952/rise-fall-brazilian-inequality-1981-2004 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/8336 |
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okr-10986-83362021-04-23T14:02:40Z The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 Ferreira, Francisco H.G. Leite, Phillippe G. Litchfield, Julie A. ALLOCATION EFFECT BETWEEN-GROUP COMPONENTS CALORIC REQUIREMENTS CASH TRANSFERS CHANGES IN POVERTY COLLEGE EDUCATION CONSUMER PRICE INDEX CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES COST OF FOOD DATA SET DATA SETS DECLINE IN POVERTY DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY DECOMPOSITION RESULTS DECOMPOSITION TECHNIQUES DEVELOPING WORLD DISTRIBUTIONAL DYNAMICS DYNAMIC DECOMPOSITION EARNINGS INEQUALITY ECONOMIC GROWTH EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT ELDERLY HOUSEHOLDS ELDERLY WOMEN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS EXCHANGE RATE EXCHANGE RATES EXPLANATORY POWER FACTOR COMPONENTS FAMILY INCOME FOOD AVAILABILITY FOOD BASKET FOOD EXPENDITURE FOOD EXPENDITURES GDP GINI COEFFICIENT GROUP INEQUALITY GROWTH RATE HEADCOUNT INDEX HEADCOUNT POVERTY HOUSEHOLD HEAD HOUSEHOLD INCOME HOUSEHOLD INCOMES HOUSEHOLD SIZE HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS HOUSING INCOME INCOME CONVERGENCE INCOME DATA INCOME DISPARITIES INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME DISTRIBUTIONS INCOME EFFECT INCOME INEQUALITY INCOME LEVELS INCOME POVERTY INCOME SHARE INCOME SOURCE INCOME SOURCES INEQUALITY INEQUALITY DECLINES INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION INEQUALITY DYNAMICS INEQUALITY LEVELS INEQUALITY MEASURE INEQUALITY MEASURES INEQUALITY TRENDS INSURANCE LABOR LABOR FORCE LABOR INCOME LABOR MARKET MACROECONOMIC INSTABILITY MACROECONOMIC STABILITY MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES MARGINAL RETURNS MEAN INCOME MEAN INCOMES MEAN LOG DEVIATION MEDIAN INCOME NATIONAL ACCOUNTS OBSERVED CHANGES PENSIONS PER CAPITA INCOMES POLICY CHANGES POLICY DISCUSSIONS POLICY RESEARCH POOR POOR HOUSEHOLDS POPULATION SHARE POPULATION SUBGROUP POVERTY CHANGES POVERTY DECLINE POVERTY DEFICIT POVERTY DYNAMICS POVERTY GAP POVERTY INCIDENCE POVERTY INDICATORS POVERTY INDICES POVERTY LINE POVERTY LINES POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY REDUCTION POVERTY SERIES PROGRAMS PROPORTIONAL CHANGE PURE INEQUALITY EFFECT QUESTIONNAIRES REAL INCOMES REAL WAGES REDUCTION IN POVERTY REGIONAL DIFFERENCES REGIONAL INEQUALITY RURAL AREAS SCHOOLING SELF-EMPLOYMENT SOCIAL ASSISTANCE SOCIAL SECURITY SURVEY DESIGN TARGETING TRADE LIBERALIZATION TRANSFERS URBAN AREAS WORLD INEQUALITY Measured by the Gini coefficient, income inequality in Brazil rose from 0.57 in 1981 to 0.63 in 1989, before falling back to 0.56 in 2004. This latest figure would lower Brazil's world inequality rank from 2nd (in 1989) to 10th (in 2004). Poverty incidence also followed an inverted U-curve over the past quarter century, rising from 0.30 in 1981 to 0.33 in 1993, before falling to 0.22 in 2004. Using standard decomposition techniques, this paper presents a preliminary investigation of the determinants of Brazil's distributional reversal over this period. The rise in inequality in the 1980s appears to have been driven by increases in the educational attainment of the population in a context of convex returns, and by high and accelerating inflation. While the secular decline in inequality, which began in 1993, is associated with declining inflation, it also appears to have been driven by four structural and policy changes which have so far not attracted sufficient attention in the literature, namely sharp declines in the returns to education; pronounced rural-urban convergence; increases in social assistance transfers targeted to the poor; and a possible decline in racial inequality. Although poverty dynamics since the Real Plan of 1994 have been driven primarily by economic growth, the decline in inequality has also made a substantial contribution to poverty reduction. 2012-06-18T19:58:07Z 2012-06-18T19:58:07Z 2006-03 http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2006/03/6634952/rise-fall-brazilian-inequality-1981-2004 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/8336 English Policy Research Working Paper; No. 3867 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper Publications & Research Latin America & Caribbean Brazil |
| repository_type |
Digital Repository |
| institution_category |
Foreign Institution |
| institution |
Digital Repositories |
| building |
World Bank Open Knowledge Repository |
| collection |
World Bank |
| language |
English |
| topic |
ALLOCATION EFFECT BETWEEN-GROUP COMPONENTS CALORIC REQUIREMENTS CASH TRANSFERS CHANGES IN POVERTY COLLEGE EDUCATION CONSUMER PRICE INDEX CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES COST OF FOOD DATA SET DATA SETS DECLINE IN POVERTY DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY DECOMPOSITION RESULTS DECOMPOSITION TECHNIQUES DEVELOPING WORLD DISTRIBUTIONAL DYNAMICS DYNAMIC DECOMPOSITION EARNINGS INEQUALITY ECONOMIC GROWTH EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT ELDERLY HOUSEHOLDS ELDERLY WOMEN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS EXCHANGE RATE EXCHANGE RATES EXPLANATORY POWER FACTOR COMPONENTS FAMILY INCOME FOOD AVAILABILITY FOOD BASKET FOOD EXPENDITURE FOOD EXPENDITURES GDP GINI COEFFICIENT GROUP INEQUALITY GROWTH RATE HEADCOUNT INDEX HEADCOUNT POVERTY HOUSEHOLD HEAD HOUSEHOLD INCOME HOUSEHOLD INCOMES HOUSEHOLD SIZE HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS HOUSING INCOME INCOME CONVERGENCE INCOME DATA INCOME DISPARITIES INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME DISTRIBUTIONS INCOME EFFECT INCOME INEQUALITY INCOME LEVELS INCOME POVERTY INCOME SHARE INCOME SOURCE INCOME SOURCES INEQUALITY INEQUALITY DECLINES INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION INEQUALITY DYNAMICS INEQUALITY LEVELS INEQUALITY MEASURE INEQUALITY MEASURES INEQUALITY TRENDS INSURANCE LABOR LABOR FORCE LABOR INCOME LABOR MARKET MACROECONOMIC INSTABILITY MACROECONOMIC STABILITY MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES MARGINAL RETURNS MEAN INCOME MEAN INCOMES MEAN LOG DEVIATION MEDIAN INCOME NATIONAL ACCOUNTS OBSERVED CHANGES PENSIONS PER CAPITA INCOMES POLICY CHANGES POLICY DISCUSSIONS POLICY RESEARCH POOR POOR HOUSEHOLDS POPULATION SHARE POPULATION SUBGROUP POVERTY CHANGES POVERTY DECLINE POVERTY DEFICIT POVERTY DYNAMICS POVERTY GAP POVERTY INCIDENCE POVERTY INDICATORS POVERTY INDICES POVERTY LINE POVERTY LINES POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY REDUCTION POVERTY SERIES PROGRAMS PROPORTIONAL CHANGE PURE INEQUALITY EFFECT QUESTIONNAIRES REAL INCOMES REAL WAGES REDUCTION IN POVERTY REGIONAL DIFFERENCES REGIONAL INEQUALITY RURAL AREAS SCHOOLING SELF-EMPLOYMENT SOCIAL ASSISTANCE SOCIAL SECURITY SURVEY DESIGN TARGETING TRADE LIBERALIZATION TRANSFERS URBAN AREAS WORLD INEQUALITY |
| spellingShingle |
ALLOCATION EFFECT BETWEEN-GROUP COMPONENTS CALORIC REQUIREMENTS CASH TRANSFERS CHANGES IN POVERTY COLLEGE EDUCATION CONSUMER PRICE INDEX CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES COST OF FOOD DATA SET DATA SETS DECLINE IN POVERTY DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY DECOMPOSITION RESULTS DECOMPOSITION TECHNIQUES DEVELOPING WORLD DISTRIBUTIONAL DYNAMICS DYNAMIC DECOMPOSITION EARNINGS INEQUALITY ECONOMIC GROWTH EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT ELDERLY HOUSEHOLDS ELDERLY WOMEN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS EXCHANGE RATE EXCHANGE RATES EXPLANATORY POWER FACTOR COMPONENTS FAMILY INCOME FOOD AVAILABILITY FOOD BASKET FOOD EXPENDITURE FOOD EXPENDITURES GDP GINI COEFFICIENT GROUP INEQUALITY GROWTH RATE HEADCOUNT INDEX HEADCOUNT POVERTY HOUSEHOLD HEAD HOUSEHOLD INCOME HOUSEHOLD INCOMES HOUSEHOLD SIZE HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS HOUSING INCOME INCOME CONVERGENCE INCOME DATA INCOME DISPARITIES INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME DISTRIBUTIONS INCOME EFFECT INCOME INEQUALITY INCOME LEVELS INCOME POVERTY INCOME SHARE INCOME SOURCE INCOME SOURCES INEQUALITY INEQUALITY DECLINES INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION INEQUALITY DYNAMICS INEQUALITY LEVELS INEQUALITY MEASURE INEQUALITY MEASURES INEQUALITY TRENDS INSURANCE LABOR LABOR FORCE LABOR INCOME LABOR MARKET MACROECONOMIC INSTABILITY MACROECONOMIC STABILITY MACROECONOMIC VARIABLES MARGINAL RETURNS MEAN INCOME MEAN INCOMES MEAN LOG DEVIATION MEDIAN INCOME NATIONAL ACCOUNTS OBSERVED CHANGES PENSIONS PER CAPITA INCOMES POLICY CHANGES POLICY DISCUSSIONS POLICY RESEARCH POOR POOR HOUSEHOLDS POPULATION SHARE POPULATION SUBGROUP POVERTY CHANGES POVERTY DECLINE POVERTY DEFICIT POVERTY DYNAMICS POVERTY GAP POVERTY INCIDENCE POVERTY INDICATORS POVERTY INDICES POVERTY LINE POVERTY LINES POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY REDUCTION POVERTY SERIES PROGRAMS PROPORTIONAL CHANGE PURE INEQUALITY EFFECT QUESTIONNAIRES REAL INCOMES REAL WAGES REDUCTION IN POVERTY REGIONAL DIFFERENCES REGIONAL INEQUALITY RURAL AREAS SCHOOLING SELF-EMPLOYMENT SOCIAL ASSISTANCE SOCIAL SECURITY SURVEY DESIGN TARGETING TRADE LIBERALIZATION TRANSFERS URBAN AREAS WORLD INEQUALITY Ferreira, Francisco H.G. Leite, Phillippe G. Litchfield, Julie A. The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| geographic_facet |
Latin America & Caribbean Brazil |
| relation |
Policy Research Working Paper; No. 3867 |
| description |
Measured by the Gini coefficient, income inequality in Brazil rose from 0.57 in 1981 to 0.63 in 1989, before falling back to 0.56 in 2004. This latest figure would lower Brazil's world inequality rank from 2nd (in 1989) to 10th (in 2004). Poverty incidence also followed an inverted U-curve over the past quarter century, rising from 0.30 in 1981 to 0.33 in 1993, before falling to 0.22 in 2004. Using standard decomposition techniques, this paper presents a preliminary investigation of the determinants of Brazil's distributional reversal over this period. The rise in inequality in the 1980s appears to have been driven by increases in the educational attainment of the population in a context of convex returns, and by high and accelerating inflation. While the secular decline in inequality, which began in 1993, is associated with declining inflation, it also appears to have been driven by four structural and policy changes which have so far not attracted sufficient attention in the literature, namely sharp declines in the returns to education; pronounced rural-urban convergence; increases in social assistance transfers targeted to the poor; and a possible decline in racial inequality. Although poverty dynamics since the Real Plan of 1994 have been driven primarily by economic growth, the decline in inequality has also made a substantial contribution to poverty reduction. |
| format |
Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper |
| author |
Ferreira, Francisco H.G. Leite, Phillippe G. Litchfield, Julie A. |
| author_facet |
Ferreira, Francisco H.G. Leite, Phillippe G. Litchfield, Julie A. |
| author_sort |
Ferreira, Francisco H.G. |
| title |
The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| title_short |
The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| title_full |
The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| title_fullStr |
The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| title_full_unstemmed |
The Rise and Fall of Brazilian Inequality : 1981-2004 |
| title_sort |
rise and fall of brazilian inequality : 1981-2004 |
| publisher |
World Bank, Washington, DC |
| publishDate |
2012 |
| url |
http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2006/03/6634952/rise-fall-brazilian-inequality-1981-2004 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/8336 |
| _version_ |
1764405797829214208 |