People do not like to talk about money – especially not by those who have a lot of it: This is also one reason why the wealth of the super-rich in Austria may have been underestimated up to now. According to a study by the Oesterreichische Nationalbank (OeNB), the richest one percent of Austrians hold up to 50 percent of their total assets. The richest 10 percent hold 60 to 75 percent.
In addition to two OeNB economists, the US statistician Arthur Kennickell was also involved in the study. Internal data, the national accounts and lists of the rich from various magazines were used in the models. The richest one percent are Austrians with assets of more than two million euros. The richest ten percent are households with net assets of 500,000 euros.
The results obtained deviate significantly from the OeNB survey “Household Finance and Consumption Survey”: According to this, the richest one percent holds 25 percent of total assets, 58 percent are held by the richest ten percent. ‘Given the huge discrepancies in the results obtained, we find the information content of the wealth inequality data rather limited,’ the authors conclude. It is therefore also difficult to calculate models for wealth and inheritance taxes.
According to Emanuel List, professor at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, an asset register is needed for more transparency and a solid data basis, he said on ORF radio. He considers the current OeNB estimates to be “more realistic” based on the new sources.
The trade union and SPÖ took the study yesterday as an opportunity to demand more tax justice. The Social Democrats want a levy on large fortunes and inheritances. The Austrian trade union federation advocated a millionaire tax. The ÖVP-Wirtschaftsbund spoke out clearly against “taxes on the wealthy”.
Source: Nachrichten
