Super-rich thrive as COVID-19 pushes millions into poverty

The wealthy amass more and more money and power, while most workers’ income is directly reallocated to the wealthy.

A new billionaire has been created every 26 hours during the pandemic, deepening the world’s wealth divides

https://news.trust.org/item/20220116235806-x0sea

LONDON, Jan 17 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – The world’s 10 wealthiest people more than doubled their fortunes to $1.5 trillion during the pandemic as poverty rates soared, according to a study released by a charity on Monday ahead of a high-profile World Economic Forum (WEF) event.

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Here are some figures on global inequality:

– Billionaires have seen a record surge in their wealth during the pandemic, according to aid agency Oxfam.

– The 10 richest people have boosted their fortunes by $15,000 a second or $1.3 billion a day during the pandemic.

– They own more than the world’s poorest 3.1 billion people combined.

– A new billionaire has been created every 26 hours since the pandemic began.

– More than 160 million people are estimated to have been pushed into poverty during the health crisis.

– Inequality between nations is expected to rise for the first time in a generation, and is also growing within countries.

– Wealthy nations are rebounding faster. Output in rich countries will likely return to pre-pandemic trends by 2023, but will be down 4% on average in developing countries, according to the World Bank.

– In 2023, per capita incomes are likely to remain below 2019 levels in 40 developing countries, the bank says.

– Inequality is contributing to the death of at least 21,300 people each day – one person every four seconds, according to Oxfam’s report.

– An estimated 5.6 million people in poor countries die each year due to lack of access to healthcare, while hunger kills more than 2.1 million annually, the report said.

– The proportion of people with COVID-19 who die from the illness in developing countries has been estimated at roughly double that of rich countries.

– Just over 7% of people in low-income countries have received a vaccine dose compared with more than 75% in high-income countries.

– The wealthiest 1% of the world emits more than twice as much planet-warming carbon dioxide as the bottom 50%.

– If unchecked, climate change could push up to 132 million people into extreme poverty by 2030, according to World Bank estimates.

– The pandemic has set back global progress towards gender equality, too. It will take nearly 136 years for women to be on an equal footing with men – up from 99 years pre-pandemic.