Economy
This Simple Chart Reveals the Distribution Of Global Wealth
The Global Wealth Distribution in One Chart
The pandemic resulted in global wealth taking a significant dip in the first part of 2020. By the end of March, global household wealth had already declined by around 4.4%.
Interestingly, after much monetary and fiscal stimulus from governments around the world, global household wealth was more than able to recover, finishing up the year at $418.3 trillion, a 7.4% gain from the previous year.
Using data from Credit Suisse, this graphic looks at how global wealth is distributed among the adult population.
How is Global Wealth Distributed?
While individuals worth more than $1 million constitute just 1.1% of the world’s population, they hold 45.8% of global wealth.
Wealth Range | Wealth | Global Share (%) | Adult Population |
---|---|---|---|
Over $1M | $191.6 trillion | 45.8% | Held by 1.1% |
$100k-$1M | $163.9 trillion | 39.1% | Held by 11.1% |
$10k-$100k | $57.3 trillion | 13.7% | Held by 32.8% |
Less than $10k | $5.5 trillion | 1.3% | Held by 55.0% |
Total | $418.3 trillion | 100.0% | Held by 100.0% |
On the other end of the spectrum, 55% of the population owns only 1.3% of global wealth.
And between these two extreme wealth distribution cases, the rest of the world’s population has a combined 52.8% of the wealth.
Global Wealth Distribution by Region
While wealth inequality is especially evident within the wealth ranges mentioned above, these differences can also be seen on a more regional basis between countries.
In 2020, total wealth rose by $12.4 trillion in North America and $9.2 trillion in Europe. These two regions accounted for the bulk of the wealth gains, with China adding another $4.2 trillion and the Asia-Pacific region (excluding China and India) another $4.7 trillion.
Here is a breakdown of global wealth distribution by region:
Region | Total Wealth (US$B) | Change in Total Wealth (US$B) | Change % | Wealth Per Adult (US$) | Change % |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
North America | 136,316 | 12,370 | 10.0 | 486,930 | 9.1 |
Europe | 103,213 | 9,179 | 9.8 | 174,836 | 9.8 |
Asia-Pacific | 75,277 | 4,694 | 6.7 | 60,790 | 5.0 |
China | 74,884 | 4,246 | 6.0 | 67,771 | 5.4 |
India | 12,833 | -594 | -4.4 | 14,252 | -6.1 |
Latin America | 10,872 | -1,215 | -10.1 | 24,301 | -11.4 |
Africa | 4,946 | 36 | 0.7 | 7,371 | -2.1 |
World | 418,342 | 28,716 | 7.4 | 79,952 | 6.0 |
India and Latin America both recorded losses in 2020.
Total wealth fell in India by $594 billion, or 4.4%. Meanwhile, Latin America appears to have been the worst-performing region, with total wealth dropping by 11.4% or $1.2 trillion.
Post-COVID Global Outlook 2020-2025
Despite the burden of COVID-19 on the global economy, the world can expect robust GDP growth in the coming years, especially in 2021. The latest estimates by the International Monetary Fund in April 2021 suggest that global GDP in 2021 will total $100.1 trillion in nominal terms, up by 4.1% compared to last year.
The link in normal times between GDP growth and household wealth growth, combined with the expected rapid return of economic activity to its pre-pandemic levels, suggests that global wealth could grow again at a fast pace. According to Credit Suisse estimates, global wealth may rise by 39% over the next five years.
Low and middle-income countries will also play an essential role in the coming year. They are responsible for 42% of the growth, even though they account for just 33% of current wealth.
Economy
G20 Inflation Rates: Feb 2024 vs COVID Peak
We visualize inflation rates across G20 countries as of Feb 2024, in the context of their COVID-19 pandemic peak.
How Far Have Inflation Rates Fallen Across the G20?
This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.
A major economic consequence that arose in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic was high inflation. In many countries, inflation rates reached double-digits, which is significantly higher than the 2-3% typically targeted by central banks.
Generally speaking, an extended period of fast rising prices is not optimal because it erodes the purchasing power of money. This makes everyday essentials like groceries, rent, and gas more expensive.
To see how inflation is currently faring, we’ve visualized annual inflation rates across G20 countries as of February 2024, in the context of their pandemic peak. This data was sourced from Trading Economics and can also be found in the table below.
Country | Inflation (%, Feb 2024) | Inflation (%, COVID peak) | Date of Peak |
---|---|---|---|
🇦🇷 Argentina | 276.0 | -- | -- |
🇹🇷 Turkey | 67.1 | 85.5 | Oct 2022 |
🇷🇺 Russia | 7.7 | 17.8 | Apr 2022 |
🇿🇦 South Africa | 5.6 | 7.8 | Jul 2022 |
🇮🇳 India | 5.1 | 7.8 | Apr 2022 |
🇧🇷 Brazil | 4.5 | 12.1 | Apr 2022 |
🇲🇽 Mexico | 4.4 | 8.7 | Sept 2022 |
🇦🇺 Australia | 4.1 | 7.8 | Dec 2022 |
🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 3.4 | 11.1 | Oct 2022 |
🇺🇸 United States | 3.2 | 9.1 | Jun 2022 |
🇰🇷 South Korea | 3.1 | 6.3 | Jul 2022 |
🇫🇷 France | 3.0 | 6.3 | Feb 2023 |
🇨🇦 Canada | 2.8 | 8.1 | Jun 2022 |
🇯🇵 Japan | 2.8 | 4.3 | Jan 2023 |
🇪🇸 Spain | 2.8 | 10.8 | Jul 2022 |
🇮🇩 Indonesia | 2.8 | 6 | Sept 2022 |
🇩🇪 Germany | 2.5 | 8.8 | Nov 2022 |
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia | 1.8 | 6.2 | Jun 2021 |
🇮🇹 Italy | 0.8 | 11.8 | Oct 2022 |
🇨🇳 China | 0.7 | 2.8 | Sept 2022 |
Notes: Spain is a permanent guest of the G20. Australia’s latest inflation rate is as of Dec 2023.
Unlike other G20 nations, Argentina’s inflation rate has only gone up since the pandemic ended. This is largely due to the country’s history of printing money to compensate for government overspending.
One area hit particularly hard is food prices. According to a local consultancy, the price of beef to consumers rose by 40% to 70% between July to August 2023.
Learn More About Inflation in 2024
If you want to see more graphics on inflation, check out this global map that visualizes inflation forecasts for every country in 2024.
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