금융과 소득불평등 : 정부 및 가계부채 중심으로

As economies grow, income inequality globally has been increasing non-linearly. This study empirically analyzes the relationship between household and government debt and income inequality, assuming that access to debt and assets through finance can exacerbate income inequality. The analysis estimates the relationship between income inequality and household debt by categorizing the scale of household debt and using financial variables as control variables for 31 OECD countries from 2007 to 2022. The results of the study indicate that high household debt exacerbates income inequality. Particularly, in countries with high levels of debt, the increase in household debt further exacerbates income inequality through the interactions of financial development, interest rates, and net financial assets, underscoring the importance of the financial system. An increase in the unemployment rate is a major factor that exacerbates income inequality. However, through interactions with household debt, when both household debt and the unemployment rate increase, income inequality is mitigated, indicating that government policy interventions (such as tax reductions and financial stabilization policies) are effective. The increase in government debt appears to mitigate income inequality, suggesting that some aspects of government debt play a role in income redistribution.