ABSTRACT
This chapter examines changes in the distribution of the global population by income from 2001 to 2011 with a focus on the middle-income population, or the global middle class. The analysis encompasses 111 countries, which accounted for 88% of the global population and 85% of world output in 2011. It finds that just 13% of the global population could be considered middle income in 2011. Although this was nearly double the share of middle income in 2001, the rise in prosperity was limited to a few regions, namely China, South America, and Eastern Europe. The middle class barely expanded in India and Southeast Asia, Africa, and Central America, and most of the global population remained poor or low income.
