Chinese Wealth Inequality: Housing, Financial Assets, and the Emergence of a Wealthy Elite

Household wealth is an important indicator of financial well-being that is highly concentrated in China. Wealth ownership is a particularly important explore the social and economic factors that are associated with wealth ownership and with membership in top wealth positions, including a focus on market and political capital. Our findings underscore the importance of wealth for understanding inequality and highlight the degree to which top households are accumulating assets. Our results also show that both market and political capital contribute to wealth ownership, but the relative importance of these influences varies for net worth, housing wealth, and financial assets. measure for China given that asset ownership is one of the more visible and influential measures of social and economic status. This chapter contributes to the emerging literature on Chinese household wealth ownership and inequality in three ways. First, we provide updated estimates of the degree to which wealth ownership is concentrated, including estimates for net worth, homes, and financial assets. Second, we document the portion of wealth that is held by top households again including separate estimates of net worth, homes, and financial assets. Third, weexplore the social and economic factors that are associated with wealth ownership and with membership in top wealth positions, including a focus on market and political capital. Our findings underscore the importance of wealth for understanding inequality and highlight the degree to which top households are accumulating assets. Our results also show that both market and political capital contribute to wealth ownership, but the relative importance of these influences varies for net worth, housing wealth, and financial assets.

Duke Scholars

Author Lisa A. Keister Sociology