The richest 1% of people are on track to own more than the rest of the world combined in just two years time, according to international aid and development charity, Oxfam.
Since 2010, the richest 1% of adults in the world have increased their share of total global wealth, owning as much as 48% in 2014, says Oxfam’s ‘Wealth: having it all and wanting more’ report.
If the trend continues, the top 1% will have more wealth than the remaining 99% of people in just two years, exceeding 50% of global wealth ownership by 2016.
Using data from Credit Suisse’s Global Wealth Databook and the Forbes list, the Oxfam report shows global wealth is increasingly concentrated in the hands of a small elite, who have particular interests in sectors such as finance and insurance.
Since March 2013, there have been 37 new billionaires in these sectors, joining household names such as Warren Buffet and Michael Bloomberg.
Billionaires listed as having interests or activities in the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors have also been particularly successful, increasing their collective net worth by 47% between 2013 and 2014.
The study also shows that, while the wealth of the richest increases, since 2010 the total wealth of the poorest half of the world has steadily declined. Currently, the wealth of the 80 richest individuals equals that of 3.5 billion people in the rest of the world.
Oxfam plans to press forward with its campaign ‘Even It Up’, calling for governments, institutions and corporations to tackle the wealth inequality described in its report, at the 2015 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos this week.
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