E‐commerce and Consumption Inequality in China

Abstract

Consumption inequality may impede economic development and hinder the achievement of common prosperity. Using three waves of the China Family Panel Studies from 2014 to 2018, this paper investigated the impact of e‐commerce on consumption inequality, as measured by the Kakwani index. The results indicate that e‐commerce can reduce household consumption inequality. A mechanism analysis shows that e‐commerce can narrow household income inequality, increase the purchasing power of low‐income households, and promote the consumption of households with limited access to offline markets, thereby reducing the consumption gap. A heterogeneity analysis suggests that the positive role of e‐commerce in reducing consumption inequality can be more significant among vulnerable households, such as households with elderly members and less‐educated households. E‐commerce can have varying impacts on consumption inequality across different subcategories of household expenditure, with the greatest impact seen in entertainment and education expenditure. These findings provide new evidence for the role of e‐commerce in reducing consumption inequality in the digital economy, and the implications of this are discussed.

Can urban e-commerce transformation improve economic resilience? a quasi-natural experiment from China

“…Its emergence has promotes the integration of the real and digital economies [22]. Furthermore, its rapid growth can support the country's economic development [23], promote financial market stability [24], contribute to rural revitalization and narrowing the urban-rural gap [25], and effectively alleviate the inequality of household consumption [26]. Second, in terms of environmental protection, some studies show that the impact of e-commerce development on the environment is a double-edged sword.…”