Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) — Only the richest Americans enjoyed gains in income from the economic recovery during 2010-2013, as median earnings fell for all others, a report from the Federal Reserve showed.
Median income adjusted for inflation rose 2 percent to $223,200 for the wealthiest 10 percent of households from 2010 to 2013, the Fed said in its Survey of Consumer Finances, taken every three years. The bottom 60 percent saw the biggest declines.
Household wealth and incomes have become increasingly stratified during the recovery, thanks in part to gains in the stock and housing markets that have been boosted by the Fed's unprecedented stimulus. The labor market has been slower to progress, with wages remaining stagnant for many workers. The Fed survey suggests much of the divide is driven by the changing nature of work in America.
"What we have seen in recent years is the polarization of the labor market" as job growth is skewed toward the highest and lowest skill levels, hollowing out the middle, said Dean Maki, chief U.S. economist at Barclays PLC in New York. "That seems to be coming through in the Fed data."
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