Is "rising income(s)" relative to inflation/cost-of-goods?

As pay goes up, so does competition over (limited) resources. You can't tell from incomes alone how much better off humanity is in terms of actual resources. There are also complex arrangements such as ownership, and carbon debt that further complicate things.

"...economists assure us that, in any case, the only long-term solution to global poverty is more economic growth."

Economists are so often employed as Marketeers working on behalf of the ruling class..