• MILITARY: Brazil-France submarine programme (Graphic DUE Mar 28, 15:00GMT)
  • SPACE: Calls for protected moon sites (Graphic DUE Mar 28, 16:00GMT)
  • ACCIDENT: Why did Baltimore bridge collapse? (Graphic DUE Mar 28, 17:30GMT)
  • For full details of graphics available/in preparation, see Menu -> Planners
Graphic shows the top five richest people in America, and distribution of U.S. household wealth.
GN40670EN

BUSINESS

The 50 richest Americans are worth as much as the poorest 165 million

October 12, 2020 - The 50 richest Americans have a combined net worth nearly equal to the poorest 50 percent of the U.S. population – some 165 million people – according to data from the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Covid-19 has exacerbated inequality in the U.S., with job losses falling heavily on low-wage service workers and the virus disproportionately infecting and killing people of colour, Bloomberg said.

The 50 richest people in the country are worth almost $2 trillion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, up $339 billion from the beginning of 2020.

At the same time, the poorest 50 percent of Americans collectively hold just $2.08 trillion, or 1.9 percent of all U.S. household wealth.

Meanwhile, the top one percent of Americans have a combined net worth of $34.2 trillion. They hold 30.4 percent of all U.S. household wealth and more than half of the equity in corporations and in mutual fund shares, according to the Federal Reserve data.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 12/10/2020; STORY: Graphic News
Advertisement