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The gap between the countries turned out to be significant. The maximum values were recorded in Georgia – 10.2%. Among European countries, the largest share of income among the super-rich is observed in Estonia (8.3%), Bulgaria (7.5%), Poland (7%), Serbia (6.9%), Turkey (6.1%), Denmark (5.8%) and Romania (5.1%), Euronews reports.
In the largest European economies, the indicators are close to the average level: in Germany, France and the UK – 4.9%, in Spain – 5%.
At the other pole are countries with a minimum concentration of income in the super-rich. In the Netherlands this indicator is 1.6%, in Belgium and Slovenia – 2.3% each, in Latvia – 2.4%.
According to the source, public policy plays a key role in the differences. In countries where the tax system and social registration provide more active redistribution of income, the share of the super-rich is lower. In countries with less pronounced redistribution and weaker collective bargaining systems, the share of the super-rich is higher.
The structure of the labor market, the level of pre-tax wage inequality, the scale of the shadow economy and the specifics of capital income accounting also have an impact.
In the long run, the share of the richest 0.1% in Europe declined after World War II, from 6% in the middle of the 20th century to 2.7% in the early 1980s. Then a new growth started, and by 2007 the indicator approached 5%. In recent years, it has stabilized at around 4.5%.
