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The wealth gap in the world could hardly be greater – Oxfam presents new data in a study on social inequality: According to this, the five richest men have doubled their wealth since 2020, and five billion people have become poorer. In addition, the super-rich and corporations benefit from inflation, wars and pandemics, while most people suffer from the consequences
„Inequality Inc.”: Oxfam calls for taxation of large assets.
The five richest men in the world have more than doubled their wealth since 2020. That equates to a profit of $14 million per hour. At the same time, almost five billion people worldwide have become poorer.
This is shown by the report “Inequality Inc.”, which the emergency aid and development organization Oxfam published at the start of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos.
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In it, Oxfam calls for taxation of large assets. It is important to invest these funds in climate protection, the expansion of education, health care and social security – here and worldwide.
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Billionaires’ fortunes are booming
Serap Altinisik, Executive Chairwoman of Oxfam Germany, comments: “While billions of people have to endure the shock waves of pandemic, inflation and war, the fortunes of billionaires are booming. This increasing social inequality is presenting societies with ever greater tests.
It increases gender-based and racial discrimination because marginalized groups such as women and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) are particularly affected; it undermines democracy and contributes significantly to the climate crisis becoming a catastrophe. That has to change, we need a tax on high wealth so that the super-rich also make their fair contribution to the common good.”
The report shows:
The world‘s five richest men have more than doubled their wealth since 2020, from $405 billion to $869 billion. All billionaires together are now $3.3 trillion (34 percent) richer than in 2020. Their wealth grew three times as fast as the inflation rate. Almost five (4.77) billion people, the poorer 60 percent of humanity, have collectively lost $20 billion in wealth since 2020. The total assets of the five richest Germans have grown, adjusted for inflation, by around three quarters (73.85 percent) since 2020, from around 89 to around 155 billion US dollars. In 2023, corporations have accumulated insane profits. 148 of the world‘s largest corporations made a total of $1.8 trillion in profits in the twelve months to June 2023. This represents an increase of 52.5 percent compared to average net profits in the period 2018-2021. Their excess profits, defined as profits exceeding the 2018-21 average by more than 20%, rose to nearly $700 billion. Stock ownership primarily benefits the richest people in the world. The world‘s richest one percent owns 43 percent of all financial assets. In Germany, the richest one percent owns 41.1 percent of all financial assets.