In the first half of 2016 in Russia has increased the Gini coefficient — an indicator of stratification. This is evidenced by the data of Rosstat.
It is noted that in the first half of 2016, the Gini coefficient increased to 0,399 compared to 0,396 in the first half of last year. Prior to this, starting from the first half of 2013, the figure for the past three years declined. In the first quarter of 2016, the Gini coefficient was equal to 0,392.
The share of income of 20% of the poor population in Russia declined in the first half of 0.1 percentage points (to 5.6%, compared with 5.7% a year earlier), while the share of income of 20% of the richest citizens increased by 0.2 percentage points (from 45.7% to 45.9%).
According to the Director of the Institute of labour and social security Ranhigs Alexander Safonov, growth of inequality is the tendency of the current crisis. “If in 2008 in the midst of the crisis, the government took a decision to increase salaries by 30%, real incomes are declining because of lack of funds in the budget for social assistance”, — he explained, reports RBC.
The Gini coefficient varies from 0 to 1, the closer the value is to zero, the more evenly distributed the incomes.
