New research from Goldman Sachs shows that “the richest 1 percent of Americans now account for more than half the value of equities owned by U.S. households,” while the bottom 90 percent of the country held just 12 percent of the value of stocks.
What’s more, Goldman Sachs believes that soaring equities prices will only enable the super rich to strengthen their grip on stock market wealth“The wealthiest households have been by far the biggest driver of positive household equity demand,” the report states. “Accelerating US economic growth and rising stock prices should continue to support equity purchases by the top 1 percent.”
Exacerbating this problem, writes the Financial Times, has been the sluggish wage growth for ordinary workers.
“The widening wealth disparity has been driven by stagnant wages for many Americans, which held them back from partaking in the stock market’s gains of the past decade,” the publication writes. “Despite the dotcom collapse and the global financial crisis, the broad US stock market has climbed more than tenfold since 1990 — gains that have mostly accrued to the richest part of the population.”
