Global Inequality Convergence Quiz

Global Inequality Eras

• Global inequality has followed three eras: 1820-1950, 1950-last decade of 20th century, and the current era of decreasing inequality since the last decade of 20th century.
• The first era saw rising income differences between and within countries; the second era had very high global and between-country inequality.

Current Era of Decreasing Inequality

• The current era has seen the emergence of the global "median" class and the greatest reshuffling in income positions between the West and China since the Industrial Revolution.
• Absolute income differences have increased in the past 30 years, and the income gap between the "core" and the poor "periphery" (excluding China) remains large.

Global Inequality Measures

• The between-country inequality component is the main driving force behind changes in global inequality, and thus its decline.
• The use of PPP dollars is the best way to assess differences in living standards, but there are significant problems of index numbers that remain.

Global Inequality Trends

• The between-country inequality component was rising throughout the 19th century, plateauing over the second half of the 20th century, and beginning its decline at the close of the 20th century, continuing to 2018-20.
• The preponderant role of between-country inequality in explaining the decrease of global inequality in the past seventy years can be seen from a comparison of global inequality calculated using household surveys and the between-inequality component where mean incomes from household surveys are replaced by GDPs per capita.