Oxfam says billionaire emerges each two days worldwide in 2017

MOSCOW, Jan 22 (PRIME) -- The number of billionaires worldwide has reached 2,043 after a new billionaire emerged each two days in 2017, Oxfam said on Monday in a report prepared for an upcoming World Economic Forum in Davos.

The wealth growth of this group of individuals amounted to U.S. $762 billion in the period, and as a result, 1% of the population accumulated 82% of the global wealth.

The financial state of 3.7 billion poorest people did not improve in 2017.

“The billionaire boom is not a sign of a thriving economy but a symptom of a failing economic system. The people who make our clothes, assemble our phones and grow our food are being exploited to ensure a steady supply of cheap goods, and swell the profits of corporations and billionaire investors,” Oxfam said.

End