It would be interesting to see comparable data from the G8 countries and some emerging market economies:
Wealthiest American Families Add
To Their Share of U.S. Net Worth
By CHRISTOPHER CONKEY
April 5, 2006; Page A4
WASHINGTON -- The share of net worth held by the wealthiest 1% of American families rose slightly after inflation between 2001 and 2004, according to new figures from the Federal Reserve.
The top 1% held 33.4% of the nation's net worth in 2004, up from 32.7% in 2001, but still lower than a peak of 34.6% in 1995. Although the increase from 2001 is small, the data suggest that the upper strata, who saw their share of net worth decline between 1998 and 2001 as stock prices crashed, regained some of those losses by 2004.
The new figures on net worth -- the difference between assets and liabilities -- come from the Fed's Survey of Consumer Finances, a triennial survey based on interviews of 4,522 families that excludes those listed on the Forbes 400 list of wealthy individuals. Fed economist Arthur Kennickell noted that some respondents interviewed in the survey had wealth greater than the lowest value on the Forbes list, however.
The survey identified 715 families in the top 1%, corresponding to 1.1 million nationwide, and said the minimum net worth for the group was $6 million. In 2004, the wealthiest percent owned 70% of bonds, 51% of stocks and 62.3% of business assets.
After the richest 1%, the Fed found that the next wealthiest 9% of families held 36.1% of net worth in 2004, down from 37.1% in 2001. Below them, families in the top 50% to 90% held 27.9% of net worth in 2004, a slight increase from 2001, while families in the bottom half saw their share fall to 2.5% of net worth in 2004 from 2.8% in 2001.
Between 1989 and 2004, the figures show, families in the top 1% saw their share of net worth rise to 33.4% from 30.1%, while families in the bottom half saw their share fall to 2.5% from 3%. In the report, Mr. Kennickell noted that "wealth moved in relative terms to the upper half of the distribution during this time."
The rising slice of net worth for those at the very top between 2001 and 2004 didn't come because the super-rich acquired a greater share of stocks, cars or houses. In fact, the share of assets held by the top 1% held steady at 29.5% during the period.
Mr. Kennickell noted that it is difficult to pinpoint exactly why the top 1% gained a greater share of net worth between 2001 and 2004, because their share of assets was unchanged and their share of debt grew.
The survey found that 25% of those in the lowest 25% of net worth said they spent more than they earned in 2004, while only 6% of those in the top 1% said they did.
"A possible explanation of the decline for the lowest wealth group might be changes in their use of debt," Mr. Kennickell wrote.
The full report is available at federalreserve.gov. |
