A new academic methodology for measuring poverty defined as the average time needed to earn one international dollar, reveals that the United States has seen average poverty increase even as its economy has grown. The research, published on SSRN by economist Olivier Sterck, finds that in the U.S., inequality has grown at approximately 2.2% per year, outpacing income growth and causing poverty to rise despite overall economic expansion. By contrast, the UK, France, and Germany maintained relatively stable inequality over the same period, allowing income growth to translate into average poverty reduction. The United States has one of the most unequal economies in the world, with inequality measured by the Gini coefficient higher than in all major European economies, and this gap has risen across all 50 states regardless of political orientation.
Date: March 29, 2026. Source: euronews.com