Top incomes in Korea, 1933-2010: Evidence from income tax statistics

This paper constructs the long-term series of top income shares in Korea using income tax statistics. Top income shares dropped sharply after WWII, remained low during industrialization periods, and has ascended since the mid-1990s. We suggest that the fall in the top income shares after WWII can be explained by the economic collapse and political disruption after liberation. The rising income concentration in the last 15 years could be attributable to the drastic shift in industrial structure and the institutional factors such as the reduction in the marginal tax rate and the post-crisis changes in the corporate governance system.