In 1920, the 1 per cent — the top percentile of the income distribution — accounted for 15-20 per cent of total gross income in developed countries. Germany was strikingly unequal, while the most egalitarian societies were countries such as Australia, Canada and the US, made up largely of immigrants.
In the 50 years that followed, the share of the 1 per cent fell almost everywhere by about half, to 7-10 per cent of total income. The relative decline in the standing of the top 0.1 per cent was even more dramatic.
I will focus on the experience of the 1 per cent in Britain, France, Germany and the US, drawing on Atkinson and Morelli’s Chartbook of Economic Inequality, a comprehensive analysis of gross income — but other economically advanced countries (Australia, Canada, Netherlands, Sweden) tell much the same story.