French Economist Piketty Clarifies Findings on Rising Inequality

French economist Thomas Piketty sought to clarify his findings on the causes of rising inequality in a new paper published in the American Economic Review.

In his best-selling book “Capital in the Twenty-First Century,” Piketty posited that the return on capital -- property, stocks, bonds and the like -- would outpace economic growth over time, tending to increase wealth inequality. He summed up that relationship in a simple equation: r>g.