This increase in inequality has captured many headlines, and has also been cited as an explanation for political developments like Brexit or the outcome of the last US presidential election. This rise in inequality is usually attributed to changes in technology, productivity and the skills of workers, where the return on higher and newer skills has accelerated faster than the returns to less-skilled workers.
However, inequality has also fallen since the 1970s – if we look at the gaps between countries. Fifty years ago, the gap between rich countries and poor countries was very clear. Nowadays, there are a lot more middleincome countries. There are also many more rich and middle-class people in countries that used to be almost universally poor.