Where the millionaires are: Healthier economies, wealthier households – MSN Money
Global wealth has returned to 2007 pre-crisis levels, largely because of the recovery in stock and bond markets, according to a study by the Boston Consulting Group.
Assets under management — investable assets that do not include the money in investors’ own businesses, real estate or luxury goods — increased 11.5% to $111.5 trillion last year, the report said.
Wealth also grew more concentrated: Millionaire households, which represent less than 1% of all households, held 38% of the world’s wealth last year, up from 36% in 2008.
The beneficiaries of this uptick included entrepreneurs and individual investors, who saw their net worth rebound after the financial free fall of 2008 and early 2009, says Greg Skidmore, the president and chief investment officer for Belray Asset Management in Greenwich, Conn.
North America saw the biggest absolute gain in wealth: up $4.6 trillion, or 15%, from the previous year. Asia-Pacific saw the biggest jump at 22%, or $3.1 trillion.
Although the U.S. hosted the largest number of millionaire households — 4.7 million — the study found the greatest concentration in Singapore, where more than one in 10 households had assets worth $1 million or more. Singapore also ranked first among the surveyed countries for growth in millionaire households, with a 35% increase from the previous year.
via Where the millionaires are: Healthier economies, wealthier households – MSN Money.
