VOA新闻杂志2024--Report: Wealth Held by Billionaires Jumped in 2024

 

Report: Wealth Held by Billionaires Jumped in 2024

The Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) Billionaire Ambitions Report for 2024 said the total number of billionaires worldwide had risen to 2,682 from 2,544 a year earlier.

Their worth increased to $14 trillion from $12 trillion. In 2015, their total wealth stood at $6.3 trillion.

The World Bank says that the world's population was just over 8 billion, and its gross¹ domestic² product, or GDP, was about $105.4 trillion last year. GDP is a measure of all the goods and services produced in a year. This shows that a very small group of people holds about 13 percent of the world's GDP.

Self-made billionaires

The UBS report for 2023 showed that new billionaires gained more wealth through inheritance than through entrepreneurship⁵. But most of the year's new billionaires were self-made.

The 2024 report was based on a study of billionaires between June and September and wealth data on the super-rich. It showed the risk of international conflict and inflation⁶ were their main worries. The study also showed that most billionaires see North America as offering the best investment returns over the next year.

In the United States, the number of billionaires jumped to 835 from 751, led by industrial and tech entrepreneurs⁴, with their total wealth climbing to $5.8 trillion from $4.6 trillion.

Wealth in China drops

In mainland China, the number of billionaires dropped to 427 from 520, and their wealth to $1.4 trillion from $1.8 trillion. In 2021, there were 626 in mainland China, together worth more than $2.5 trillion, the UBS figures for that year said.

Benjamin Cavalli of UBS said the decrease was from losses in real estate markets in China. There was also a drop in the value of businesses owned by some of China's wealthiest in an undependable economic period.

India, the world's most populous⁷ country, saw its number of billionaires increase during the past year by over a fifth to 185. Their wealth rose by more than 40 percent to almost $906 billion, UBS said.

In Western Europe, Switzerland passed Britain to become the country with the second-highest number of billionaires after Germany, increasing its total by 10 to 85. The British total dropped by one to 82, UBS said.

Germany with 117 (or 8 more), France with 46 (or 12 more), Italy with 62 (or 6 more) and Spain with 27 (or 3 more), all gained billionaires. The combined wealth of France's billionaires was highest among Europeans.

Words in This Story

billionaire - n. a rich person who has at least a billion dollars, pounds, or other currency

inheritance - n. money, property, etc., that is received from someone when that person dies

entrepreneur³ - n. a person who starts a business and is willing to risk loss in order to make money

1 gross   

adj.全部的，粗俗的，肥胖的；vt.获得...总收入

参考例句：

• The gross weight of the box of chocolates is 500 grams.那盒巧克力的全部重量是500克。
• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。

2 domestic   

adj.家里的，国内的，本国的；n.家仆，佣人

参考例句：

• This is domestic news.这是国内新闻。
• She does the domestic affairs every day.她每天都忙家务。

3 entrepreneur   

n.企业家，主办人

参考例句：

• The entrepreneur has become a news figure.这位企业家变成了新闻人物。
• The entrepreneur takes business risks in the hope of making a profit.企业家为追求利润而冒险。

4 entrepreneurs   

企业家( entrepreneur的名词复数 )； 主办人

参考例句：

• He is one of the entrepreneurs of the concert. 他是这场音乐会的主办人之一。
• Entrepreneurs are free to develop their businesses. 企业家们可以任意发展自己的企业。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

5 entrepreneurship   

企业家身份

参考例句：

• Spawr indeed personified American ingenuity, self-reliance, initiative and entrepreneurship. 斯帕尔看不上机构重叠和清规戒律，表现出美国人的机敏，有着独立、首创精神和企业家的风度。
• He provides evidence that n-achievement is highly correlated with entrepreneurship. 他提供的材料表明“n--成就”与企业家精神高度相关。

6 inflation   

n.胀大，夸张，通货膨胀

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• The inflation of the airbed took several minutes.给空气床垫充气花了几分钟时间。

7 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。