Koreans are the most pessimistic in Asia about the prospect of income disparity, according to a survey by Fidelity Worldwide Investment in March of 5,186 people in 10 major Asian cities.

Asked whether the income gap will get bigger over the next decade, 93 percent of Korean respondents said yes. Next were Taiwanese with 87 percent. Only four out of 10 Koreans said they believe their wages will rise over the next decade, and the remaining 59 percent said they will stay the same or drop.

Indians and Chinese were more optimistic. Some 81 percent of Chinese and 65 percent of Indians believe their wages will go up.

Some 67 percent of Koreans believe their children will be middle-income earners when they turn 40, while 22 percent believed their children will be high wage earners.

But Koreans tend to consider their income level higher than it is, with 39 percent saying they belong in the higher-income bracket, the second highest after the Japanese (45 percent). In contrast, respondents in New Delhi (70 percent), Mumbai (74 percent), Shanghai (78 percent) and Beijing (67 percent) believe their income level to be lower than it really is.