World billionaire wealth leaps, fueled by US beneficial properties, UBS says

ZURICH (Reuters) – The wealth held by the world’s billionaires jumped by about 17% over the previous yr, as vital beneficial properties among the many tremendous wealthy in the US greater than offset a decline in China, Swiss financial institution UBS stated on Thursday.

The UBS Billionaire Ambitions Report for 2024 stated the overall variety of billionaires had risen to 2,682 from 2,544 a yr earlier, and their price to $14 trillion from $12 trillion. In 2015, their complete wealth stood at $6.3 trillion.

In accordance with the World Financial institution, the globe’s inhabitants was simply over 8 billion final yr, and its gross home product (GDP) about $105.4 trillion, underlining simply how a lot wealth is concentrated in a tiny sliver of humanity.

Many of the yr’s new billionaires had been self-made. The financial institution’s report for 2023 had proven new billionaires buying extra wealth by inheritance than entrepreneurship.

The newest report, primarily based on a survey of billionaires performed between June and September and wealth knowledge on the tremendous wealthy, confirmed the chance of geopolitical battle and inflation had been their fundamental worries.

The survey additionally confirmed that North America was overwhelmingly seen as providing the most effective funding returns over the subsequent yr.

In the US, the variety of billionaires jumped to 835 from 751, led by industrial and tech magnates, with their complete wealth climbing to $5.8 trillion from $4.6 trillion.

In mainland China the variety of billionaires dropped to 427 from 520, and their wealth to $1.4 trillion from $1.8 trillion. In 2021, there have been 626 in mainland China, collectively price greater than $2.5 trillion, in response to earlier UBS figures.

Benjamin Cavalli, head of strategic purchasers at UBS world wealth administration, stated the decline mirrored losses in actual property markets and a drop within the worth of corporations owned by a few of China’s wealthiest amid a much less sure financial outlook.

India’s variety of billionaires elevated through the previous yr by over a fifth to 185 and their wealth by greater than 40% to virtually $906 billion, UBS stated.

In Western Europe, Switzerland overtook Britain to change into the nation with the second-highest variety of billionaires after Germany, rising its complete by 10 to 85.

France, with 46 (+12), Germany with 117 (+8), Italy with 62 (+6) and Spain with 27 (+3), all gained billionaires whereas the British complete dropped by one to 82, UBS stated. The mixed wealth of France’s billionaires was highest amongst Europeans.