Estimating the inequality of legal and latent incomes with regard to the purchasing power of ruble in the Russian regions

Abstract

The paper presents the research results of monetary income differentiation of the population with use of the author's methodical approach with regard to different purchasing power of ruble in the Russian regions. All the population of Russia was rearranged from regional quintile groups into the all-Russian groups that resulted in significant changes of inequality parameters at the interregional level of incomes in comparison with the Rosstat parameters. For the first time an influence of latent incomes to inequality and poverty level in the Russian regions is analyzed. Division of the population of the country into needy and wealthy groups is offered. Calculations and recommendations regarding redistributive overcoming of poverty at the expense of increase of the rate of surtax on incomes of the wealthy group are developed. The models by Pen, Lorenz and Ravallion-Huppi, modified by the authors of the article, were applied in the research. Calculations were carried out for all subjects of the Russian Federation (without the Chechen republic) according to the Russian State Statistics Service figures for 2000–2008.</div>