Evaluating Changes in the Distribution of Capital Wealth.

A small-scale general equilibrium model in which the distribution of capital wealth is a key parameter is employed to examine the potential economic consequences of greater capital wealth equality. Every performance indicator examined--aggregate income, consumption equality, social welfare in the sum-of-utilities sense, and aggregate saving--is improved by greater capital wealth equality. However, the bottom-line social welfare gain, relative to the present high-inequality situation--even from the maximum achievable level of complete equality in capital wealth distribution--would be numerically rather modest. Copyright 1994 by Oxford University Press.