The mass media frequently accuse official statistics of underestimating the inflation rate (consumer price index – CPI) by half to two-thirds. This paper analyzes potential sources of distortion of the official CPI, concluding that systematic errors causing underestimating are absent, and...

A popular methodology of studying spatial income inequality is analysis of beta-convergence (i.e. an inverse relationship between current income per capita and its initial level). Its widespread use is based on a belief that the economic growth theory predicts income convergence among economies...

This paper provides an overview of methodologies used to analyze inter-regional income inequality, and a critical survey of empirical studies that deal with Russian regions. It discusses implications of the growth theory regarding dynamics of inter-economy income inequality. Methodologies for...

During the last 15–20 years, inequality between Russian regions in terms of real personal incomes per capita was decreasing. This paper aims at revealing the “anatomy” of this phenomenon. To do so, time series of every regional income per capita is tested for catching-up with the national...

The mass media frequently accuse official statistics of underestimating the inflation rate (consumer price index – CPI) by half to two-thirds. This paper analyzes potential sources of distortion of the official CPI, concluding that systematic errors causing underestimating are absent, and...

This paper deals with testing a time series with a structural break in its mean for a unit root when the break date is known. A nonlinear (with respect to coefficients) test equation is used, providing asymptotically efficient estimates. Finite-sample and quasi-asymptotic empirical distributions...

Following Williamson (1965), many economists estimate inter-regional inequality with the use of indexes weighted by regions’ shares in the national population. Despite that widespread, this approach is conceptually inconsistent, yielding an estimate of interpersonal inequality among the whole...

In this paper, we examine economic growth in Mexican states over 1940–2015, focusing on the issue of their convergence interpreted as catching-up. A nonlinear econometric model with asymptotically decaying trends of the income gap is applied for the analysis. Particular cases of the baseline...

Lacking data on price levels across locations, economists are forced to proxy them. One method is to extrapolate the price levels known for locations in some point in time to another point by multiplying the initial price levels by the local CPIs. With the use of simulation experiments, this...

While estimating regional inequality, many economists use inequality indices weighted by regions’ shares in the national population. Despite this approach is widespread, its adequacy has not received attention in the regional science literature. This paper proves that such approach is...