As 2014 draws to a close, the wealthiest people on the entire planet increased their fortunes even more. When you look at the top percentage of earners in the world, they managed to increased their combined wealth around $92 billion dollars, a staggering figure when you think about it. Despite a massive oil price war (gasoline where I live is only $2.30 per gallon) that contributed to falling energy prices and a massive economic downturn in Russia, the ultra-rich were still able to come out on top.
Over the course of 2014, in general, global stocks rose throughout the year. The MSCI Wold Index, the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index, and the Stoxx Europe 600 also considerably rose this year, compared to numbers from 2013.
Among all of the worlds richest billionaire, a few individuals came out on top and increased their fortunes even more. People that we are familiar with like Warren Buffet and Mark Zuckerberg increased their wealth by a lot. Buffet managed to increase his wealth this year by $13.7 billion, while Zuckerberg increased his wealth by $10.6 billion dollars. The man who came out on top this year was Jack Ma, the CEO of the Chinese e-commerce company known as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. He managed to increase his fortune by $25.1 billion dollars, and he is also the richest person in Asia. Bill Gates increased his worth by $9.1 billion this year, and he still remains as the world wealthiest individual with a personal fortune of $87.6 billion dollars.
This trend is expected to continue throughout 2015 as oil prices remain low, the interest rates fall, the U.S. dollar stays strong, and real estate is projected to go up. These facts bother a lot of people, as we see the rich getting richer, while everyone else pretty much stays the same, or goes down. However, when you are a billionaire it is much easier to increase you wealth given the resources, funds, and opportunities that come with being one of the wealthiest people on the planet.
Photo from Andrew Burton/Getty Images
