An Empirical Study on the Urban and Rural Residents' Consumption Structure in China Based on ELES Model

This paper first defined the connotation of the consumption structure,and analyzed the status quo of urban and rural residents'consumption structure in through the Engel Coefficient.It found that the improvement of rural consumption structure lagged behind that of urban residents,indicating,to some extent,that there exists a gap in consumption capability between the rural and urban residents.Furthermore,an ELES model was established with data from 1995 to 2007 in the China Statistical Yearbook,on the basis of which a comparative analysis was conducted of basic consumption expenditure,the marginal propensity to consume,and the income elasticity of demand between China's urban and rural residents.The results showed that a significant difference exists in the consumption structure of China's urban and rural residents.Finally,the reasons for the differences were analyzed,and some countermeasures were proposed to help narrow the differences.