The distributional impact of the pandemic

Hacioglu-Hoke, S, Känzig, D R and Surico, P (2021) The distributional impact of the pandemic. European Economic Review, 134. p. 103680. ISSN 0014-2921 OPEN ACCESS

Abstract

The top quartile of the income distribution accounts for almost half of the pandemic-related decline in aggregate consumption, with expenditure for this group falling much more than income. In contrast, the bottom quartile of the income distribution has seen the smallest spending cuts and the largest earnings drop but their total incomes have fallen by much less because of the increase in government benefits. The decline in consumers’ spending preceded the introduction of the lockdown, whose partial lifting has triggered a stronger recovery in sectors with a lower contact rate. The largest spending contractions are concentrated in the most affluent regions. These conclusions are based on detailed high-frequency transaction data on spending, earnings and income from a large fintech company in the United Kingdom.

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Item Type: Article
Subject Areas: Economics
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© 2021 Elsevier

Funder Name: European Research Council
Date Deposited: 12 Mar 2021 13:08
Date of first compliant deposit: 12 Mar 2021
Subjects: Crises
Consumer behaviour
Last Modified: 05 Nov 2024 02:39
URI: https://lbsresearch.london.edu/id/eprint/1684
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