1% of China’s top earners hold a greater share of wealth than the bottom 50% revealing huge wealth gaps, according to Bloomberg. Analysts believe that the pandemic has worsened the situation, and less affluent people are finding it harder to climb the social ladder.
- China’s day-long college entrance exam (gaokao) is increasingly viewed as a barrier to opportunity due to a rapidly growing student population and a widening disparity between top schools and the rest.
- Currently, less than one-fifth of new undergraduates last year at top-ranked Tsinghua University were from rural or less developed areas
- Housing prices in China have skyrocketed, with a Shenzen apartment’s cost approximately 43.5 times the city’s average annual salary.
- Analysts now believe a more evenly distributed income among the 1.4 billion Chinese people is necessary for President Xi Jinping to maintain support ahead of 2022
- The government risks backlash, nonetheless, if it implements reforms to address the wealth gap especially hurting the emerging middle class
- Attempts to overhaul the gaokao have met resistance from parents and students who feel disadvantaged for rule change before completing the system.
China’s economy could become the world’s biggest within a decade, remaining one of the most unequal.
