When are Cities Engines of Growth in China? Spread and Backwash Effects across the Urban Hierarchy

Chen A. and Partridge M. D. When are cities engines of growth in China? Spread and backwash effects across the urban hierarchy, Regional Studies. China's remarkable growth has an urban bias, but it is unclear whether it has greatly disadvantaged particular regions. To assess this question, a Central Place Theory framework is employed to assess spread and backwash effects. It is found that New Economic Geography representations do not capture the heterogeneity across urban tiers. Market potential in China's mega-cities is inversely related to growth for smaller cities and rural communities, while medium-sized cities have positive spread effects. It is concluded that China's urban-centric process should be re-evaluated because it may not maximize aggregate growth, and growth in the mega-cities may reduce growth elsewhere.