Persistence of Regional Inequalities in Brazil: Polarization and Divergence

This paper aims to evaluate the recent dynamics of the regional development in Brazil assuming that the recent fall in income inequality does not indicate income convergence. The income polarization index shows that when Brazil is divided in the subsets North/Northeast and the rest of the country, there is greater identification of states and municipalities within each group (poor with poor and rich with rich), and an increase of the distance between them. In this sense, the reduction of total inequality reflects a process of income divergence.

Inequality; Polarization; Divergence; Income Dynamics