The richest 1 percent is now wealthier than the rest of humanity combined, according to Oxfam, which called on governments to intensify efforts to reduce such inequality.
In a report published on the eve of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, the anti-poverty charity cited data from Credit Suisse Group AG in declaring the most affluent controlled most of the world’s wealth in 2015. That’s a year earlier than it had anticipated.
Oxfam also calculated that 62 individuals had the same wealth as 3.5 billion people, the bottom half of the global population, compared with 388 individuals five years earlier. The wealth of the most affluent rose 44 percent since 2010 to $1.76 trillion, while the wealth of the bottom half fell 41 percent or just over $1 trillion.
The charity used the statistics to argue that growing inequality poses a threat to economic expansion and social cohesion. Those risks have already been noted in countries from the U.S. to Spain, where voters are increasingly backing populist political candidates, while it’s sown tensions on the streets of Latin America and the Middle East.
“It is simply unacceptable that the poorest half of the world’s population owns no more than a few dozen super-rich people who could fit onto one bus,” said Winnie Byanima, executive director of Oxfam International. “World leaders’ concern about the escalating inequality crisis has so far not translated into concrete action.”
Oxfam said governments should take steps to reduce the polarization, estimating tax havens help the rich to hide $7.6 trillion. Politicians should agree on a global approach to ending the practice of using offshore accounts, it said.
Full Report: An Economy for the 1%
I guess the US now has a Royal Family too and Obama is their Sheriff of Nottingham.
Holy shit. How is this going to end well?
Wealth inequality like this happens rarely and is followed by massive depressions, 1928 being the most recent example.
Let’s see if this works…
History teaches us how this ends.
Greed. Base greed.
People asking questions, lost in confusion. Well I tell them there’s no problem. Only solutions.
Well they shake their heads and they look at me as if I’ve lost my mind. I tell them there’s no hurry,
I’m just sitting here doing time. JL
What allowed this was the degradation of the Republican party. Wasn’t it Teddy Roosevelt (GOP) who went after the Robber Barons of the late 19th century? The Reagan admin aggressively prosecuted Banksters during the S&L scandal. Not any longer. It’s all about the revolving door between gov and private biz; it’s spinning faster than ever and BOTH parties are guilty. Things went off the rails during Clinton, then collapsed during “W”, resulting in the fucking liar currently in the WH. I have a real problem with politicians exiting their posts as millionaires due to payoffs for their “service”. How the hell can anyone believe Hitlery is worth $300k for a friggin speech?
The problem isn’t with the rich – it is with governments. The U.S. has fostered this to occur and the politicians (Obama, etc.) deflect the gov’t blame by blaming the rich for inequality.
Gov’t produces nothing. it consumes the wealth of a nation – equate to a parasite. Big gov’t ensures a downfall.
Westcoaster – they “eave” as multi-millionaires; once out of “Office” the opportunities for income generation are amazing – Hitlery’s $300k per speech will be dwarfed by the amount “Mr Peace Prize” can demand (and will most assuredly get).
I would not be at all surprised to hear that Obama’s “speaking fees” might be on a par with the lifetime earnings of the “lower class” individuals he seems to despise – those who REALLY generate National wealth.
Phil from oz , why are you envious ? Don’t you make more money then 90% of the population ?
The bottom 50% consists of Africa, India, Chinese peasants. I have more than all them combined, too.
What hogwash.
Things have a way of balancing out when they get this far out of whack. The balancing is not going to be pretty. MASSIVE losses from top-to-bottom.
The fact is, in order to achieve some semblance of world wealth equality would require a drop in wealth by the developed world by say 75%.
Any takers? Anyone at all here who wants to drop 75% of their incomes and standard of living so the world inequality gap closes?
Right then. I did not think so.
Unintended Consequences for the Elite.
Llpoh…
integrity is expensive….
good on you.
Suzanna
Dayumm llpoh, that was harsh. Loved it.
I dont care about how much one makes…but that dollars have become votes.