The coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately hit countries with high per capita incomes, so the gap between the poor and the rich has narrowed. Bloomberg reports this with reference to research.
The decline in inequality began in 2007, but in 2020 it turned out to be more significant. “This tells us more about the terrible failure of many Western governments to protect their citizens than about the successes of poorer countries. The pandemic has exposed tragic gaps in the public health systems of rich countries,” the publication notes.
For example, in the United States, states with higher per capita income, on average, had the highest death toll from a pandemic. Research also shows that states that chose not to impose strict quarantines in the hopes of protecting their economies did not benefit much.
Earlier it became known that the Swedish authorities were afraid of the growth in the number of billionaires in the country at the end of 2020 amid the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. This indicates a widening gap between rich and poor, they say.
The combined wealth of 169 Swedish wealthy people in 2020 increased by 295 billion kronor ($ 35 billion) to 1.3 trillion kronor. This corresponds to 40 percent of all private savings in Sweden held in equities and equity funds.