Wealth Inequality in Latin America

Chapters highlights:

• Aggregate wealth has been increasing in countries like Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Uruguay, reaching close to 3.5 times the national income for market value estimates and 5-6 times at book values

 

• Wealth inequality is extremely high for the few countries with administrative data, with the top 1% share ranging between 37% and 40.6%, close to the United States' level and below South Africa's.

 

• Household asset surveys show very low shares among the bottom 50%, well below 10% and close to zero for a few countries, reinforcing the idea of large inequalities.

 

• Indirect evidence suggests that extreme inequality is likely to be the rule in the entire region, given the high and stable levels of total and capital income inequality.

 

• The region urgently needs more and better information on wealth to catch up with high-income countries. Including wealth surveys, national balance sheets and publicly-available administrative records.