• Financial Times , Tuesday, October 21, 2008 10:45 AM

Only France, Greece and Spain have bucked the trend of a widening gap between rich and poor over the past 20 years, according to a report issued by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The greatest inequality in incomes was found in Mexico and Turkey, followed by Portugal and the United States. Denmark and Sweden were the most equal societies in terms of income.

"Rich households in America have been leaving both middle and poorer income groups behind," says the OECD. "This has happened in many countries but nowhere has this trend been so stark as in the United States," says the OECD.

The average annual income of the richest 10% in the U.S. -- $93,000 -- was the highest in the OECD. The poorest 10% earned $5,800, "about 20% lower than the average for OECD countries," according to the study. The biggest reason for the increase in inequality was changes in the labor market, with low-skilled workers experiencing "ever-greater problems in finding jobs."

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