The report by worldwide development organisation Oxfam, titled Working For the Few, published ahead of the World Economic Forum meet in Davos, details the impact that widening inequality is having in both developed and developing nations.
‘Wealthy elites have co-opted political power to rig the rules of the economic game, undermining democracy and creating a world where the 85 richest people own the wealth of half of the world's population,’ Oxfam claimed. It further added that since the late 1970s, tax rates for the richest have fallen in 29 of the 30 countries for which data are available, meaning that in many places the rich not only get more money but also pay less tax on it.
As per the report, in the last 25 years wealth has become even more concentrated in the hands of fewer people so much so that one per cent of the world's families own almost half (46 per cent) of the world's wealth.
Oxfam wants governments to take urgent action to reverse the trend. It is asking those attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) to make six-point personal pledge to tackle the problem.’It is staggering that in the 21st Century, half of the world's population own no more than a tiny elite whose numbers could all sit comfortably in a single train carriage,’ Oxfam executive director Winnie
Byanyima said.
The report alleged that the richest individuals and companies in the world hide trillions of dollars away from the tax man in a web of tax havens around the world. ‘It is estimated that $21 trillion is held unrecorded and off-shore,’ it said.
The report further added that in India, the number of billionaires increased tenfold in the past decade, aided by a highly regressive tax structure and the wealthy exploiting their government connections, while spending on the poorest remains remarkably low.
Moreover, seven out of ten people live in countries where economic inequality has increased in the last 30 years. Besides, the richest one per cent increased their share of income in 24 out of 26 countries for which we have data between 1980 and 2012. The richest one per cent increased their share of income in 24 out of 26 countries for which we have data between 1980 and 2012.
China’s growth slows down to 14-year low
BEIJING: China's economy grew by 7.7 per cent in 2013, the lowest in 14 years, amid painful reform process undertaken by the world's second largest economy to spur growth amid efforts to avoid defaults on huge debt.
China's gross domestcic product (GDP) expanded 7.7 per cent from a year ago, the slowest pace of growth since 1999, official figures here said on Monday.
The GDP reached a sizable 56.88 trillion yuan ($9.31 trillion), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. The economy's fourth-quarter growth also stood at 7.7 per cent. The figure, however, brought a sigh of relief for the Chinese government as this is the first economic data of the government that assumed power in March last year under the leadership of Xi Jinping in a once-in-a-decade political transition in the communist nation.
It is ‘a good report card’ presented to China's leaders who took office in March last year, state-run Xinhua news agency quoted experts as saying.
There were concerns earlier that the government could be under political and economic pressure if the 2013 GDP goes below the official target of 7.5 per cent.
The figure also matches the growth rate of 2012 under the previous regime of Hu Jintao. Releasing the new data, NBS director Ma Jiantang said ‘China's economic performance stabilised in 2013’. He cited encouraging GDP and job data as well as a subdued inflation.
Figures showed China created over 10 million new jobs in 2013 and inflation stood at 2.6 per cent, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The 7.7 per cent in the final quarter of 2013 marked a moderate slowdown from 7.8 per cent in the third quarter. The Chinese government defined the ‘upper and lower limits’ of the reasonable range of economic performance in 2013.
With a GDP growth rate of 7.5 per cent, the ‘lower limit’ is intended to ensure steady expansion and employment, and with the consumer price index at around 3.5 per cent, the ‘upper limit’ is meant to prevent inflation.
‘Wealthy elites have co-opted political power to rig the rules of the economic game, undermining democracy and creating a world where the 85 richest people own the wealth of half of the world's population,’ Oxfam claimed. It further added that since the late 1970s, tax rates for the richest have fallen in 29 of the 30 countries for which data are available, meaning that in many places the rich not only get more money but also pay less tax on it.
As per the report, in the last 25 years wealth has become even more concentrated in the hands of fewer people so much so that one per cent of the world's families own almost half (46 per cent) of the world's wealth.
Oxfam wants governments to take urgent action to reverse the trend. It is asking those attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) to make six-point personal pledge to tackle the problem.’It is staggering that in the 21st Century, half of the world's population own no more than a tiny elite whose numbers could all sit comfortably in a single train carriage,’ Oxfam executive director Winnie
Byanyima said.
The report alleged that the richest individuals and companies in the world hide trillions of dollars away from the tax man in a web of tax havens around the world. ‘It is estimated that $21 trillion is held unrecorded and off-shore,’ it said.
The report further added that in India, the number of billionaires increased tenfold in the past decade, aided by a highly regressive tax structure and the wealthy exploiting their government connections, while spending on the poorest remains remarkably low.
Moreover, seven out of ten people live in countries where economic inequality has increased in the last 30 years. Besides, the richest one per cent increased their share of income in 24 out of 26 countries for which we have data between 1980 and 2012. The richest one per cent increased their share of income in 24 out of 26 countries for which we have data between 1980 and 2012.
China’s growth slows down to 14-year low
BEIJING: China's economy grew by 7.7 per cent in 2013, the lowest in 14 years, amid painful reform process undertaken by the world's second largest economy to spur growth amid efforts to avoid defaults on huge debt.
China's gross domestcic product (GDP) expanded 7.7 per cent from a year ago, the slowest pace of growth since 1999, official figures here said on Monday.
The GDP reached a sizable 56.88 trillion yuan ($9.31 trillion), the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said. The economy's fourth-quarter growth also stood at 7.7 per cent. The figure, however, brought a sigh of relief for the Chinese government as this is the first economic data of the government that assumed power in March last year under the leadership of Xi Jinping in a once-in-a-decade political transition in the communist nation.
It is ‘a good report card’ presented to China's leaders who took office in March last year, state-run Xinhua news agency quoted experts as saying.
There were concerns earlier that the government could be under political and economic pressure if the 2013 GDP goes below the official target of 7.5 per cent.
The figure also matches the growth rate of 2012 under the previous regime of Hu Jintao. Releasing the new data, NBS director Ma Jiantang said ‘China's economic performance stabilised in 2013’. He cited encouraging GDP and job data as well as a subdued inflation.
Figures showed China created over 10 million new jobs in 2013 and inflation stood at 2.6 per cent, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The 7.7 per cent in the final quarter of 2013 marked a moderate slowdown from 7.8 per cent in the third quarter. The Chinese government defined the ‘upper and lower limits’ of the reasonable range of economic performance in 2013.
With a GDP growth rate of 7.5 per cent, the ‘lower limit’ is intended to ensure steady expansion and employment, and with the consumer price index at around 3.5 per cent, the ‘upper limit’ is meant to prevent inflation.