Assessing regional convergence of the size of middle classes in Euro-Mediterranean countries
Metadatos
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Taylor & Francis
Materia
Euro-Mediterranean countries Middle-income class Lower- and upper-middle classes Regional convergence Economic cycle Spatial spillovers
Date
2023-07-13Referencia bibliográfica
Elena Bárcena-Martín, Elías Melchor-Ferrer & Salvador Pérez-Moreno (2023). Assessing regional convergence of the size of middle classes in Euro-Mediterranean countries, Regional Studies, Regional Science, 10:1, 659-675. [DOI: 10.1080/21681376.2023.2229421]
Patrocinador
University of Malaga; University of Granada; Regional Government of Andalusia [UMA18-FEDERJA-005]; Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation [AEI/10.13039/501100011033]Résumé
Historically, Euro-Mediterranean European countries have presented high levels of intra- and interregional socio-economic inequalities and are regular recipients of financial support under European Union Cohesion Policy. This paper provides evidence of regional convergence in the size of lower- and upper-middle-income classes across regions of France, Greece, Italy and Spain for the period 2004-17. Our results also reveal that changes in class size in neighbouring regions are associated with changes in the same direction in the lower- and upper-middle classes of the region of interest. As regards growth of class size in neighbouring regions, the convergence process is offset in both middle-income groups, but only partially for the upper-middle class. Furthermore, the economic cycle affects the process of regional convergence in the size of the middle class, although the effects are non-homogeneous for both middle-class groups. While increases or decreases in gross domestic product (GDP) do not seem to be closely related to upper-middle-class size, relatively persistent decreases rather than increases in GDP over time tend to be more linked to lower-middle-class size. These findings point to significant differences in the convergence dynamics between lower- and upper-middle classes, with the former being more sensitive to both neighbouring regions and the business cycle.