Using data from 1980, 1990, and 2000 U.S. censuses, as well as the 2010 and 2019 American Community Surveys and the 1993-2019 National Survey of College Graduates, we investigate the performance of Chinese immigrants in the U.S. labor market over the past 40 years since China initiated its...

How does a relaxation of migration restrictions affect labor-market outcomes of incumbent migrants? In this paper, we answer this question by studying a significant internal migration policy change in China: the 2014 hukou reform. This reform substantially removed the migration barriers of...

This study seeks to distinguish among competing theories of urbanization in an explanation of recent, massive rural-to-urban migration in China. Specifically, the research evaluates whether Chinese urbanization following the 1990s liberalization of mobility and residential location restrictions...

We estimate a skill-based directional migration model to assess the effects of regional human capital agglomeration on labor migration in China. Upon accounting for regional differentials in skill-based compensation, cost-of-living, amenities, and the like, model estimates indicate the...

This paper assesses regional inequality in urban China. It predicts earnings for each worker in multiple provinces, compares provinces of residence and maximum predicted earnings, and estimates predicted relocation gains. It presents a reference comparison for the U.S. in 1940. Only 7.4% of U.S....

This paper assesses regional inequality in contemporary urban China by predicting earningss for individual workers in multiple provinces, comparing the province of maximum predicted earnings to the province of residence and assessing the predicted gains from relocation. The paper performs the...

Using 1990, 2000 censuses and a 2010 survey, I examine the economic performance of ethnically Chinese immigrants from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan (CHT) in the U.S. labor market. Since 1990, relative wages of CHT migrants have been escalating in contrast to other immigrants. I show these...

Research has shown a limited labor mobility response to trade shocks. However, existing studies of aggregate mobility may miss important heterogeneity. This paper proposes a mechanism through which local labor markets adjust to trade shocks, namely immigrant mobility. I find a relative decline...

This paper reports findings from a Vancouver study which examines the settlement and adaptation experience of Chinese immigrants in Vancouver. The study reveals that non-economic reasons, such as the environment, education and citizenship, constituted the primary motivations for Chinese...