A further 2,124 people joined the ranks of the super-rich last year, taking the total number of ultra-high net worth individuals with personal fortunes of more than $30m (£24m) to 265,490.
The number of UHNW people worldwide increased by 0.8% in 2018, a sharp slowdown from the 12.9% rise in 2017, when the very rich benefited from booming stock markets.
Last year, the extremely wealthy were affected by declining investment values and rising world trade tensions, according to a report by the research company Wealth-X.
The combined fortunes of UHNW individuals fell by 1.7% to $32.3tn in 2018. Despite the decline, researchers at Wealth-X predict the ranks of the global financial elite will grow to 353,550 by 2023, with a combined fortune of $43tn.
“After hitting the ‘sweet spot’ for global wealth creation in 2017, wealth preservation became the primary focus for many UHNW individuals in 2018,” said the Wealth-X 2019 report published on Wednesday.
“The late-year slump in equity markets meant that investors entered 2019 with some trepidation against a backdrop of slowing global growth and rising tensions in world trade.
“Developments over the first half of the year largely justified this sense of caution, with volatile asset markets, a deepening US-China trade war, rising Brexit-related threats and weaker global demand bringing about another challenging environment for wealth generation.”
However, the report said that over the long term, population growth, the rise of emerging-market economies, transformative digital technologies and the growing trend of consumers buying premium products will “continue to provide opportunities for wealth creation”.
Only 14.6% of UHNW people are women, but this is up from 13.7% a year earlier. “Women accounted for almost one in five of the global ultra wealthy class below the age of 50,” the report said.
“This is an indication of shifting trends in global wealth distribution, changing cultural attitudes and the rising frequency of intergenerational wealth transfers, and reveals how technology is creating new opportunities for female entrepreneurs to create wealth.”
New York regained its status as the city with the highest number of super-rich individuals, at 8,980, up 1.3%. In Hong Kong, which had held the top spot a year earlier, the number of ultra-rich residents fell 10.6% to 8,950.
The number of UHNW individuals in Hong Kong is expected to have fallen more sharply since then as the Wealth-X report covers 2018 – before widespread pro-democracy protests plunged the city’s economy into crisis.
There were 22.8 million people worldwide with fortunes of more than $1m last year, an increase of 1.1% on 2017.
