Americans who were left behind as the country pulled out of the Great Recession - African-Americans, Hispanics and people without college degrees - saw large gains in net worth in the last three years, the Federal Reserve said Wednesday.

But the improvements did not make up for deepening economic inequality: The share of America's income held by the top 1 percent of households reached 24 percent in 2016, a record high, and the median net worth of white households, at $171,000, was nearly 10 times larger than for black households.

The findings suggest that while a robust economy benefits all economic groups, the wealthiest and most educated are in a position to benefit even more, because they begin with a significant advantage.

"The gap between the haves and have nots has closed a bit in recent years, but it still remains a gulf," said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.

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