Ostry, J., Berg, A. (2014), “Treating Inequality with Redistribution: Is the Cure Worse than the Disease?”, iMFdirect Blog , 26 February.
Rising income inequality looms high on the global policy agenda, reflecting not only fears of its pernicious social and political effects, (including questions about the consistency of extreme inequality with democratic governance), but also the economic implications. While positive incentives are surely needed to reward work and innovation, excessive inequality is likely to undercut growth, for example by undermining access to health and education, causing investment-reducing political and economic instability, and thwarting the social consensus required to adjust in the face of major shocks.
Understandably, economists have been trying to understand better the links between rising inequality and the fragility of economic growth. Recent narratives include how inequality intensified the leverage and financial cycle, sowing the seeds of crisis; or how political-economy factors, especially the influence of the rich, allowed financial excess to balloon ahead of the crisis.
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Relevant Posts
- Dolls, Μ., Fuest, C., Neumann, D. and Peichl, A., (2014), “Fiscal Integration in the Eurozone: Economic Effects of Two Key Scenarios”, EUROMOD Working Paper 1/14, January.
- Wolff, G., De Sousa, C., Sapir, An., and Terzi, Al., (2014), “The Troika and financial assistance in the euro area: successes and failures”, Bruegel, 19 February.
- Blanchard, Ο., Jaumotte, F. and Loungani, P., (2013), “Unemployment, labour-market flexibility and IMF advice: Moving beyond mantras”, VoxEU, 18 October.