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2% of the world`s Population Own more than half of its Wealth

A first of its kind UN study on the distribution of wealth published in Helsinki last week showed that 1% of the world`s adult population holds 40% of the world`s wealth. The richest 2% own more than half of the world`s wealth. The study was conducted by the UN`s the World Institute for Development Economics Research found that while the distribution of income is not even, the distribution of wealth is a lot less so.

The world`s wealth is mostly concentrated in North America, Europe and South-East Asia`s richest nations. The residents of these countries hold nearly 90% of the world`s wealth. This has been the first time a study on the distribution of individuals` wealth has been studied. The study found that while the richest 2% of the population own more than half of the world`s wealth the poorest 50% of the population own together less than 1% of the world`s wealth. A good analogy for this is a group of 10 people sharing $100 by one person holding $99, while the rest share the remaining dollar. The study found that for a couple to qualify for the top 1% of the world`s population they would need to own together a million dollars worth of assets ? 37 million people are within this criteria. More than half of these individuals live in the United States or Japan. $2,200 per adult is enough to qualify for the top half of the world`s population, and the top 10% requires assets valued at $61 thousand.

The researchers calculated peoples` personal wealth by subtracting their debt from the fiscal value of there assets. In 2000 the world wealth was $125 trillion, approximately $20,500 per person. For comparison the average wealth of a person in India is $1,100, while in Japan it is $181,000.