Lucas vs. Lucas: On Inequality and Growth

January 1, 2007

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Format: Chicago

Juan P Cordoba, and Genevieve Verdier. Lucas vs. Lucas: On Inequality and Growth, (USA: International Monetary Fund, 2007) accessed December 22, 2024

Disclaimer: This Working Paper should not be reported as representing the views of the IMF.The views expressed in this Working Paper are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the IMF or IMF policy. Working Papers describe research in progress by the author(s) and are published to elicit comments and to further debate

Summary

Lucas (2004) asserts that "Of the tendencies that are harmful to sound economics, the most seductive, and in my opinion the most poisonous, is to focus on questions of distribution... The potential for improving the lives of poor people by finding different ways of distributing current production is nothing compared to the apparently limitless potential of increasing production." In this paper we evaluate this claim using an extended version of Lucas' (1987) welfare-evaluation framework. Surprisingly, we find that the welfare costs of inequality outweigh the benefits of growth in most cases. These calculations support the case for a research agenda that treats not only growth but also inequality as a priority.

Subject: Business cycles, Consumption, Consumption distribution, Income, Income inequality

Keywords: Economic growth, WP

Publication Details

Pages:

39
Volume:

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DOI:

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Issue:

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Series:

Working Paper No. 2007/017
Stock No:

WPIEA2007017
ISBN:

9781451865813
ISSN:

1018-5941

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