The richest people in the United States of America (USA), Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos and Warren Buffett, together have assets greater than the savings of even 160 million Americans.
Those three billionaires together have a total of 248,5 billion US dollars, which exceeds the combined value of the assets of about 63 million American households, according to the study "Billionaire Bonanza", prepared by the American Institute for Policy Studies.
"So much money concentrated in so few hands while a large number of people are struggling, it is not only a bad economy, but also a moral crisis," the study states, reports Tanjug.
The 400 richest people in the US, when the values of their assets are added together, have a combined wealth of $2,68 trillion, which is more than the gross domestic product (GDP) of Great Britain, France or India, according to a study based on the Forbes 400 list. wealthiest and last year's Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances.
"Our 400 richest people now have more wealth than the combined assets of 64 percent of the US population, or about 80 million households or 204 million people. That's more people than the population of Canada and Mexico combined," the report added.
The tax cuts proposed by US President Donald Trump will likely widen the gap even more, as 80 percent of the tax cuts will go to the richest, or one percent of households.
"Wealth inequality is on the rise. Now is the time for action to reduce inequality, not tax cuts for the richest," the report said.
The study suggests two ways to reduce the wealth gap - not to make inequality worse by cutting taxes on the rich, and to implement policies to reduce concentrated wealth.
"Inequality will continue to deepen unless we intervene directly to reduce the high concentration of personal wealth. By taxing our wealthiest households, we could raise significant revenues and then invest those funds in developing wealth-creating opportunities," the study concluded.
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