Judge rejects request to sideline a San Jose State volleyball player on grounds she’s transgenderIndia's economic transformation over the past two decades has lifted millions out of poverty. But this growth has not been evenly distributed. Persistent disparities in income, expenditure and savings highlight a fragile narrative of inequality. ET Year-end Special Reads Corporate Kalesh: Top family disputes of India Inc in 2024 The world of business lost these eminent people in 2024 Fast, faster, fastest: How 2024 put more speed into your shopping Income In 2005, income Gini coefficient was 0.48, indicating high inequality. This declined to 0.40 by 2014 and 2016 due to welfare programmes and rising rural incomes. But Covid pushed Gini to 0.53, its highest during the period undertaken by the PRICE ICE 360° income survey, as informal sector workers faced challenges while wealthier households benefited from asset price increases. By 2023, cash transfers and food subsidies reduced Gini to 0.41, reflecting partial recovery. Brazil's experience parallels India's. The Bolsa Familia cash transfer programme reduced its income inequality from 0.60 to 0.53 by 2014, but recessions and Covid reversed these gains, with inequality rising to 0.57. Both India and Brazil highlight the vulnerability of progress to external shocks and the need for sustained social policies. Expenditure This has been lower than income inequality, reflecting consumption-smoothing mechanisms like subsidies and remittances. Expenditure Gini declined from 0.36 in 2005 to 0.31 in 2011, showing improved access to essential goods and services for low-income households. But between 2014 and 2016, it plateaued at 0.33. Covid caused a spike to 0.46 in 2021, as wealthier households maintained consumption levels, while poorer households cut back. By 2023, expenditure inequality fell to 0.36, indicating recovery. South Africa provides a comparable example. While its income inequality is among the highest globally, programmes like Child Support Grant and Old Age Pension have stabilised expenditure inequality at lower levels. However, these efforts demonstrate that addressing consumption disparities alone can't resolve underlying structural inequalities. 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In 2005, savings Gini coefficient was 0.78, highlighting severe disparities in wealth accumulation. By 2014, it improved to 0.60 due to financial inclusion programmes like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, which brought millions into the formal financial system. Covid disrupted this progress, pushing savings Gini to 0.73 in 2021 as wealthier households saved more while poorer households struggled. By 2023, it improved to 0.56, but wealth accumulation gaps persist. Indonesia's experience echoes these challenges. Despite progress in financial inclusion, wealth disparities endure due to unequal access to investments like real estate and equities, concentrated among the wealthy. This underscores the need for policies that address systemic barriers to wealth creation. Dimensions of inequality are interconnected, influencing broader economic outcomes. Income inequality directly drives savings inequality, as higher-income households can save and invest more, compounding wealth disparities. Expenditure inequality reflects disparities in access to goods and services, further amplifying income and savings gaps. Experiences from Brazil, South Africa and Indonesia reveal that addressing only one dimension of inequality is insufficient. Policies must focus on income generation, equitable consumption and wealth accumulation to achieve inclusive growth. Structural factors underlie India's inequality trends. Economic changes have disproportionately benefited high-skilled and urban populations, leaving low-income and rural households behind. The pandemic widened these disparities, particularly for informal sector workers and marginalised groups. Financial inclusion has improved banking access, but wealth-building barriers persist. Redistribution policies like rural employment schemes and direct benefit transfers reduce inequality but require scaling up to tackle systemic challenges effectively. Expanding MGNREGA to urban areas can offer a crisis safety net. Progressive taxation, including wealth and luxury taxes, could fund redistributive programmes. Investing in education and skills is vital for low-income workers in growth sectors like tech and manufacturing. Financial inclusion must foster wealth creation via credit and investments. Targeted rural development in infra, healthcare, and education is key to reducing regional disparities and driving inclusive growth. The PRICE ICE 360° surveys reveal that while progress has been made, external shocks like the pandemic expose the fragility of these gains. Policymakers must prioritise resilience and inclusivity to ensure economic growth benefits for all. Reducing inequality is not only a moral imperative but also a prerequisite for sustainable development.By Wayne Cole SYDNEY (Reuters) - Asian shares edged lower on Monday as high Treasury yields challenged lofty Wall Street equity valuations while underpinning the U.S. dollar near multi-month peaks. Volumes were light with the New Year holiday looming and a rather bare data diary this week. China has the PMI factory surveys out on Tuesday, while the U.S. ISM survey for December is due on Friday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan dipped 0.2%, but is still 16% higher for the year. Japan's Nikkei eased 0.2%, but is sitting on gains of 20% for 2024. South Korea's main index has not been so fortunate, having run into a storm of political uncertainty in recent weeks, and is saddled with losses of more than 9% for the year. It was last off 0.35%. S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq futures were both off 0.1%. Wall Street suffered a broad-based sell off on Friday with no obvious trigger, though volumes were just two-thirds of the daily average. .[.N] The S&P 500 is still up 25% for the year and the Nasdaq 31%, which is stretching valuations when compared to the risk-free return of Treasuries. Investors are counting on earnings per share growth of just over 10% in 2025, versus a 12.47% expected rise in 2024, according to LSEG data. Yet yields on 10-year Treasuries are near eight-month highs at 4.631% and ending the year around 75 basis points above where they started it, even though the Fed delivered 100 basis points of cuts to cash rates. "The continued rise in bond yields, driven by the reassessment of less restrictive monetary policy expectations, creates some concern," said Quasar Elizundia, a research strategist at broker Pepperstone. "The possibility that the Fed may keep restrictive monetary policy for longer than expected could temper corporate earnings growth expectations for 2025, which could in turn influence investment decisions." Bond investors may also be wary of burgeoning supply as President-elect Donald Trump is promising tax cuts with few concrete proposals for restraining the budget deficit. Trump is expected to release at least 25 executive orders when he takes office on Jan. 20, covering a range of issues from immigration to energy and crypto policy. Widening interest rate differentials have kept the U.S. dollar in demand, giving it gains of 6.5% for the year on a basket of major currencies. The euro has lost more than 5% on the dollar so far in 2024 to last stand at $1.0429, not far from its recent two-year trough of $1.0344. The dollar held near a five-month top on the yen at 157.71, with only the risk of Japanese intervention preventing another test of the 160.00 barrier. The strength of the dollar has been something of a burden for gold prices, though the metal is still 28% higher for the year so far at $2,624 an ounce. [GOL/] Oil has had a tougher year as concerns about demand, particularly from China, kept a lid on prices and forced OPEC to repeatedly extend a deal to limit supplies. [O/R] Brent fell 37 cents to $73.80 a barrel, while U.S. crude lost 17 cents to $70.43 per barrel. (Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)
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Bhopal, Dec 26 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and senior Congress leader Kamal Nath were among several leaders from the state who condoled the death of former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Thursday. Dr Singh died in AIIMS Delhi late evening. He was 92. Asserting that he was fortunate enough to work with the renowned economist, Nath in a post on X said, "Dr. Manmohan Singh is a respected economist of the world and one of the Prime Ministers of India who focused on public welfare. Many achievements are recorded to his credit like loan waiver for farmers, right to education for children, right to information, and forest rights law for tribals etc. His demise has caused irreparable loss to the entire nation." Dr Singh's demise is an irreparable loss for the political world, CM Yadav said. "While performing the duties of RBI Governor, Finance Minister and Prime Minister, he participated in the efforts for the economic prosperity of the country with his efficient and farsighted policies and faced various challenges boldly. He will always be remembered for his contribution to the economic development of the country. I offer my deepest condolences to the bereaved family in this hour of grief," the CM said on X. Senior Congress leader and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh, in a post on X, said Dr Singh, as a true son of this country and democracy, not only served his term as Prime Minister very well but also brought the falling economy back on track with his wisdom in the 90s. "His formula of economic liberalization gave dreams to the youth of the country and the country started walking in step with the world with a new identity. Manmohan Singh added to the dignity of every post he held. He will always be remembered as a true statesman," Singh said. Madhya Pradesh BJP president Vishnu Dutt Sharma said Dr Singh's death was a big loss for the political world. (This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)
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