Source : Perth Now news
Working class Australians are getting poorer as the ultra-wealthy continue to streak ahead, Swiss banking giant UBS says.
The bank’s annual global wealth report, released this week, shows a widening wealth gap across Australia and the globe.
“The gains were uneven. While average wealth rose notably, median wealth actually declined in most markets, highlighting a growing divide between the wealthiest and the broader population,” the report finds.
“In Australia the number of adults in the lowest wealth band fell by half between 2000 and 2010, but has barely improved since then, even increasing again occasionally.”
UBS analysis shows the average personal net wealth in Australia grew by 19 per cent since 2020 – adjusted for inflation – while the nation’s median wealth shrunk seven per cent in that time.
The figures show an extra 25,000 Australians became millionaires last year.
Millionaire status is measured by liquid and illiquid assets, and in US Dollar equivalence.
The UBS analysis draws a clear line between citizens of particular regions having more than, or less than, half a million dollars in assets.
“Last year, we pointed out the existence of a split between North America and Oceania on one side of the half-million US dollar mark and the rest of the world’s regions on the other,” the report said.
“This divide remains firmly in place, especially if we look at the United States and Australia individually.
“The former’s average wealth per adult approaches US$700,000, while the latter’s has broken through the US$600,000 barrier.”
The average wealth of an Australian adult has now reached US$613,306 ($884,528), putting the country in fifth-place.
The median Australian adult has $303,997 in assets, placing Australia in third place for highest median wealth, and 52nd out of 56 countries for inequality.
The UAE, Russia, South Africa and Brazil have the most inequality.
Australia has the second-highest proportion of adults with more than US$100,000 of assets, second only to Luxembourg.
Since the turn of the millennium, only mainland China has seen a bigger surge in the number of high net worth citizens than Australia. The number of Australians worth US$5m to US$10m has grown 11.2 per cent since 2000, second only to China’s 22.7 per cent acceleration.
Since 2000, an extra 11 per cent of Aussies are worth US$50m to US$100m.
