Speaker:Professor Zhang Jipeng (School of Economics, Shandong University)
Host:Assistant Professor Lan Lan (Li Anmin Economic Research Institute, Liaoning University)
Guest Introduction:Assistant Professor Xiao Shukang (Li Anmin Economic Research Institute, Liaoning University)
Time:Friday, November 7, 2025, 10:00-11:30 (Beijing Time)
Venue:Conference Room on the First Floor, Wuzhou Garden, Chongshan Campus, Liaoning University
Online Access:Tencent Meeting ID: 730-281-8924
Language:Chinese/English
Abstract:
Leveraging a novel wave of data from the China Household Finance Survey, we document that 60% of cross-prefecture migrants eventually returned to their hometowns, with family and retirement-related concerns being the predominant motivation. To analyze the economic consequences of “return migration”, we build a dynamic spatial general equilibrium model that features multiple migration decisions throughout a life- cycle. The migration decisions hinge on wage differentials, the pension system, access to public goods, and attachments to one’s hometown. We find that the institutional barriers that “forced” the migrants to return home slowed down the pace of urbanization, reduced aggregate output and welfare, and exacerbated spatial inequality in China. Moreover, incorporating return migration in spatial models could alter how the economy responds to economic shocks such as migration and trade liberalization, as well as the effects of place-based policies.
Speaker Profile
Zhang Jipeng is a Professor, Doctoral Supervisor, Distinguished Young and Middle-aged Scholar of Shandong University, and Chief Expert of Major Projects of the National Social Science Foundation of China. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Pittsburgh, a Bachelor of Economics and a Master of Economics from Fudan University. He has previously served at Nanyang Technological University and Southwestern University of Finance and Economics. His main research interests include labor economics, public finance, and regional and urban development.
