Crisis makes Europe the richest region in the world, study says





VALENTINA POP


16.09.2009 @ 09:18 CET


Europe has emerged as the richest region in the world, pushing North
America, where wealth has declined by more than 20 percent due to the
economic crisis, off the top spot, a study has shown.





The world's richest also feel the recession biting, especially in North
America, where the financial crisis first unfolded a year ago, reveals
a survey on global wealth carried out by the Boston Consulting Group, a
global management consulting firm.



The old continent has surpassed the United States in terms of wealth due to the financial crisis (Photo: wikipedia)








North America's wealth, measured in assets under management, plummeted by 21.8 percent, the steepest decline in the world.
A lesser fall was registered in Europe, where assets shrunk by 5.8
percent compared to last year, down to €22.2 trillion – a quarter of
the globe's total wealth.





The number of millionaire households worldwide fell from 11 million to
about 9 million - a drop of 17.8 percent. The decline was steepest in
North America and Europe, at 22 percent in both regions, although the
United States continues to have the most millionaire households -
nearly 4 million.





The crisis also narrowed the gap between the wealthy and non-wealthy.
Wealth owned by households with less than €90,000 in assets under
management increased by two percent in 2008, but it declined in all
other segments. Among households with more than €4.5 million in assets
under management, wealth fell by 21.5 percent.





Switzerland remained the largest offshore financial centre, accounting
for more than €1.5 trillion or 28 percent of the world's tax havens.
But increased regulatory scrutiny is putting pressure on offshores that
have based their edge primarily on tax avoidance. "Once their tax and
legal advantages evaporate, so too will their appeal," Peter Damisch,
co-author of the report, said in a press release.





Some nontraditional offshore centres - including several outside Europe
- remain poised for growth. Singapore and Hong Kong, in particular,
will continue to benefit from their proximity to other Asian countries,
where wealth is expected to stage a faster recovery.





The wealth management industry has weathered the storm better than most
other financial-services sectors, but still their profits fell by more
than six percent compared to last year. Stung by losses and scandals,
clients shifted their assets to basic, low-margin investments.





"Dazzling product complexity is no longer seen as a positive attribute
- if it ever really was," said Bruce Holley, another co-author of the
study.





© 2009 EUobserver.com. All rights reserved. Printed on 17.09.2009.





http://euobserver.com/9/28672

Well if Canada and Mexico would pull their own weight

Each country has its ups and downs in its history.  If we don't pull our head out of our ass on the national debt and crapy education system, we may be on the downward slide for quite a while.