Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/130331 
Year of Publication: 
2016
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 9640
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This paper investigates how private transfers from internal migration in China affect the expenditure behaviour of families left behind in rural areas. Using data from the Rural-Urban Migration in China (RUMiC) survey, we assess the impact of remittances sent to rural households on consumption-type and investment-type expenditures. We apply propensity score matching to account for the selection of households into receiving remittances, and estimate average treatment effects on the treated. We find that remittances supplement income in rural China and lead to increased consumption rather than increased investment. Moreover, we find evidence of a strong negative impact on education expenditures, which could be detrimental to sustaining investment in human capital in poor rural areas in China.
Subjects: 
remittances
labour migration
expenditure behaviour
left-behind
China
propensity score matching
JEL: 
O15
J22
R23
D13
O53
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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