回複：馮小剛談中國人的仇富, 文革的可能性

Measuring income inequality is difficult in China, in part because rich Chinese families are loathe to reveal the true extent of their wealth. Even so, independent research suggests the income gap is expanding rapidly. Where the vast majority of Chinese families were on roughly equal financial footing prior the launch of economic reforms in the late 1970s, one academic survey of more than 8000 Chinese households conducted by Texas A&M professor Gan Li in 2011 found the country’s top 10% controlling 56% of income – a figure that makes China more equal than some African countries.


A nationwide poll of internet users carried out by the China Youth Daily has found that majority of respondents see the wealth gap and the growing wage disparity as by far the greatest threat to China's prosperity in the coming decade.

Wealth disparity in China is huge (not that it's much better in numerous other countries), with GDP per person ranging from $4,031 in Gansu, to over $20,000 in Shanghai and Beijing (Macau and Hong Kong are even higher). This disparity and inequality is sustained in large part by the regressive hukou system, which prevents the free movement of people and hamstrings the meritocracy it supposedly promotes by tying children to their parents' birthplaces.

When China began to reform the planned economy three decades ago, the gauge (Gini coefficient) was at 0.3. It has since risen more than 50 per cent, hitting 0.48 back in 2007.
According to some estimate, a rise of 2 percentage points is equal to 80,000 corrupted officials misusing 1 million yuan each.