The world’s richest one per cent increased their fortune by $42 trillion over the past decade, which is nearly 34 times more than the entire bottom 50 per cent of the world’s population, according to a new analysis by Oxfam. The organisation released the new report ahead of the third meeting of G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in Brazil. It said that the average net worth of the elite jumped by nearly $400,000 per person, after adjusting for inflation, compared to $335 for the bottom half of residents. 

“Inequality has reached obscene levels, and until now governments have failed to protect people and planet from its catastrophic effects,” said Oxfam International’s Head of Inequality Policy, Max Lawson. “The richest one percent of humanity continues to fill their pockets while the rest are left to scrap for crumbs,” he added. 

Oxfam’s research also found that the share of income of the top 1 per cent of earners in G20 countries has risen by 45 per cent over four decades while top tax rates on their incomes were cut by roughly a third.

“Globally, billionaires have been paying a tax rate equivalent to less than 0.5 percent of their wealth. Their fortunes has risen by an annual average of 7.1 percent over the last four decades, and an annual net wealth tax of at least 8 percent would be needed to reduce billionaires’ extreme wealth. G20 countries are home to nearly four out of five of the world’s billionaires,” the report read. 

The latest analysis comes as the advocacy group, along with several partners, is calling on G20 leaders to hike taxes on the ultra-rich. 

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As part of its G20 presidency, the Brazilian government recently also commissioned a study on raising taxes on the wealthy. It found that a 2 per cent minimum tax on global billionaires’ wealth would yield between $200 billion and $250 billion from about 3,000 taxpayers annually. 

“Momentum to increase taxes on the super-rich is undeniable, and this week is the first real litmus test for G20 governments. Do they have the political will to strike a global standard that puts the needs of the many before the greed of an elite few?” Mr Lawson said.

Notably, Oxfam regularly issues reports highlighting global inequality and pushes for changes to start evening the playing field.

Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh. File
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Congress on October 23 charged that the gap between the ultra-rich and the middle class in the country is widening under the Modi government.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said an analysis of the publicly available data on income tax returns for the period 2013-14 to 2021-22 confirms one of the essential themes of the Bharat Jodo Yatra — that of increasing income inequality.

“The widening gap between the ultra-rich and the middle class under the Modi government is more and more apparent,” he said in a post on X.

“Here’s the proof: The top 1% of income tax payers made 17% of all income in 2013-14. By 2021-22, the top 1% made 23% of all income. “Further, the income growth of the ultra-rich was much faster than for the middle class. The top 1% of income tax payers saw their income grow at 13% year-on-year from 2013-14 to 2021-22 — a massive 60% faster than the income of the lowest 25% of tax payers,” the Congress leader claimed.

Mr. Ramesh said after adjusting for inflation, the lowest 25% tax-payers actually took home less real income in 2022 than in 2019.

“Gross income of the lowest 25% fell by 11%, from ₹3.8 lakh crore in FY19 to ₹3.4 lakh crore in FY22. Meanwhile, the real income of the top 1% jumped 30% from ₹7.9 lakh crore in FY19 to ₹10.2 lakh crore in FY22. “Figures don’t lie. Only the Prime Minister does,” he alleged.

The Congress has been alleging that income disparity between the rich and the poor has been growing in the last few years.