Income and Wealth Volatility: Evidence from Italy and the U.S. in the Past Two Decades / Conchita D'Ambrosio, Giorgia Menta, Edward N. Wolff.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

D'Ambrosio, Conchita.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Menta, Giorgia.

Wolff, Edward N.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w26527.

NBER working paper series no. w26527

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Other Title:

Income and Wealth Volatility

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2019.

Summary:

Income volatility and wealth volatility are central objects of investigation for the literature on income and wealth inequality and dynamics. Here we analyse the two concepts in a comparative perspective for the same individuals in Italy and the U.S. over the last two decades. Contrary to our expectations, we find that in both countries wealth volatility reaches significantly higher values than income volatility, the effect being mostly driven by changes in the market value of real estate assets. We also show that there is more volatility in both dimensions in the United States and that the overall trend in both countries is increasing over time. We conclude by exploring volatility in consumption.

Notes:

Print version record

December 2019.