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> The rich title goes to Luxembourg or Switzerland; then to Norway. Tax havens are special cases, and so is Norway. Sweden and the Netherlands are more useful

> The rich title goes to Luxembourg or Switzerland; then to Norway. Tax havens are special cases, and so is Norway. Sweden and the Netherlands are more useful examples of somewhat richer countries that aren't rich because of one of those factors. In general, it's more interesting to study wealth at the regional level (notice in particular the pretty vast difference between the former West and East Germany [1]). > Their median net wealth per adult is a mere $42,000 and has not improved in over a decade. It's lower than Spain (which has over 1/3 less GDP per capita), Taiwan and the US. This is largely a result of the low home ownership rate, second only to Switzerland in Europe. Net wealth is not a useful source of comparison, especially when it comes to poverty (poor people are generally more interested in the cost of renting than buying). > Their median income is near ~25% below that of the US. And so are annual hours worked per employee. It's a different tradeoff, work-life balance vs. income. And no, this is not the result of underemployment. Underemployment in Germany is pretty much middle of the road [2]. > What does that all add up to? Record poverty problems: Ugh, no. Have a look at the income curves [3]. The bottom quintile in Germany is actually doing okay, other than compared to the Nordics. Yes, relative poverty and inequlity has risen over the past 25 years, but if you want to look for reasons, I'd start with reunification and the fall of the Iron Curtain. Living standards still differ greatly between the former West and the former East Germany and wage competition from and outsourcing to Eastern Europe hasn't helped, either (though that was good for Eastern Europe, something that shouldn't be forgotten). [1] http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/File:Gross_domestic_product_(GDP)_per_inhabitant_in_purchasing_power_standards_(PPS)_in_relation_to_the_EU-28_average,_by_NUTS_2_regions,_2015_(%25_of_the_EU-28_average,_EU-28_%3D_100)_MAP_RYB17.png http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/... [2] http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Underemployment_and_potential_additional_labour_force_statistics http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/... [3] https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/08/15/this-chart-might-make-you-feel-better-about-american-inequality/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2013/08/15/this-...

Someone 9y ago
I mostly agree with you, but what, in your opinion, makes Norway special, but the Netherlands not? Norway has oil, the Netherlands has/had natural gas.
- rbehrends 9y ago
  The natural resources of the Netherlands do not have as much of an impact on the economy as the outsized effects of oil for Norway. The Netherlands are primarily wealthy for similar reasons as Germany: they're a successful trading nation (indicated by not just having high exports as a percentage of GDP, but also high imports). Obviously, the devil is in the details, but they are at a minimum more comparable to Germany than Norway.
  - Someone 9y ago
    Percentage-wise, the impact on Norway is larger, yes, but still, I think the effect of having lots of natural gas was fairly big. But yes, in other ways they are more comparable to Germany. (as to that devil in the details, one could argue that the Rhine and the Meuse are natural resources that a) make farming way more productive by keeping the grass green and b) make it way easier to become a trading nation)

Someone 9y ago

I mostly agree with you, but what, in your opinion, makes Norway special, but the Netherlands not? Norway has oil, the Netherlands has/had natural gas.

rbehrends 9y ago
The natural resources of the Netherlands do not have as much of an impact on the economy as the outsized effects of oil for Norway. The Netherlands are primarily wealthy for similar reasons as Germany: they're a successful trading nation (indicated by not just having high exports as a percentage of GDP, but also high imports). Obviously, the devil is in the details, but they are at a minimum more comparable to Germany than Norway.
- Someone 9y ago
  Percentage-wise, the impact on Norway is larger, yes, but still, I think the effect of having lots of natural gas was fairly big. But yes, in other ways they are more comparable to Germany. (as to that devil in the details, one could argue that the Rhine and the Meuse are natural resources that a) make farming way more productive by keeping the grass green and b) make it way easier to become a trading nation)